Broken Ice
by Iris Wood
Summary: Slash DH! Alt 7th year. Harry saved Draco from death, and a ghostly Sirius asks to return. Draco faces complications from being dead and Harry will help him out. COMPLETE CH 3 ADDED
1. Holiday at Hogwarts 1

Author: Iris Wood

Title: Broken Ice

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters that are canon.

Pairings: DM/HP

More complete author's note is at the end.

Note: **_Bold Italics indicate written word._**

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Chapter 1 **Holiday at Hogwarts**

Draco Malfoy pulled on his black gloves, the silver snake upon them a symbol of a very old lineage. No matter what anybody says, the Malfoy line is closer to the original Salazaar Slytherin blood than that half blooded fool could have possibly been.

Over the course of the thousand years, the Malfoys had been very hesitant in allowing other species to marry into the line, let alone muggles who were viewed as unworthy trash. Power and prestige was what being a Malfoy was about.

But over the course of the past two decades it has been shamed by the following of that fool as far as Draco Malfoy, heir to the Malfoy lands and name, held to be true. No matter what ideals _he_ believed in, or how much power _he_ was supposed to have, Draco Malfoy would have never kissed the hem of that half blooded fool with delusions of controlling the world.

No matter what his father may have believed in, Draco Malfoy only had recently cared for one thing: his approval. So a portion of Draco's childhood had been filled with the talk of the Dark Lord rising again and how the Malfoy family would be at _his_ side.

Subject to learning the Dark Arts since he was a small boy, Draco had a large arsenal of dark magic buried deep within his psyche. The wards upon the Malfoy Manor were so strong that even the Ministry had been unable to detect them.

However, it can be said that that darkness in his soul was mirrored with his listening of tales of the Boy-Who-Lived. He was the good that was the thorn in the side of evil.

Unluckily enough for the eleven year old, he had been brushed aside by the great Harry Potter for a Weasley. They really were the opposite end of the spectrum from the Malfoys. Draco Malfoy had been snubbed for trash! But as Draco gained those early years, he was jealous that the Golden Trio had something that Draco had not: true friendship. The Slytherins in his year held one belief and that was loyalty to those who had power and that was the Malfoy name.

His was the family who had been the right arm of the Dark Lord.

However, at the end of his fifth year, everything as he knew it changed. His father had been caught; there had been no possibility of denial that it was Lucius Malfoy who had been arrested doing something he shouldn't have. It had been that Potter boy who had landed his father in Azkaban.

While it was very highly likely that the Dementors would turn and leave the prison, the Ministry of Magic had passed a new law saying that Death Eaters were to be put in a magical coma until the time of trial. About a dozen Death Eaters had been put into that coma; yet those days seemed like a lifetime ago when his grief and anger had been strong. Many things had changed for him personally and in the Wizarding World.

The young Malfoy heir fixed the clasp on his cloak. A broach held it shut, another sign of the Malfoy line. His seventh and final year at Hogwarts was half way through and the heir knew that the Malfoy family lands would be his once he graduated. Actually, they had became his after his seventeenth birthday, but he was staying at Hogwarts until he finished his schooling. Nothing would stand in his way of being his own person.

Next, the young heir slid his wand up his sleeve. He was ready to face the winter outdoors. His pants were specially made jeans from a London company which were charmed impervious to the wind. Two long sleeved thermal shirts, a wool jumper, and a thick cloak protected his body. Upon his feet were trainers that he had acquired in London before seventh year, and socks that were charmed to keep the wearers feet warm. His hands wore gloves that were dragon hide with the family crest on them. Also in his hand now he held the cap that he had received from his god father before his first year; Severus had charmed it so it would grow as he grew. In his other was the Slytherin house muffler that would be applied right before his exit into the winter.

Stepping up to the mirror in his Prefect quarters for Slytherin, he checked his own image out. The mirror made a comment that Draco chose to ignore. No one told him how to dress, or how to act, but he respected the school rules. After all, his god father was Deputy Headmaster and Draco was prone to the leniency reserved for that front. Even he was not to supposed show favoritism though it was evident. After the tragic death of Narcissa Malfoy last year, Severus Snape had become the young heir's legal guardian.

Exiting from the Prefects' room and into the Slytherin Common Room, Draco shut his door and whispered the password that locked and put the concealment charm upon it. To no one's surprise a tree had been decorated and laden with gifts from families. About a dozen plus Slytherins had remained at Hogwarts over the Christmas holiday.

With the events of last year only one Slytherin would be graduating this year with him: Theodore Nott. Nott had not answered the call last year; neither had Draco, but for different reasons. In fact, only a total of five Slytherins had graduated last year with only about half the Ravenclaw class.

The rest had died in the call to the Dark Lord.

Christmas cheer had permeated the cold dungeons. Someone had hung mistletoe over the main entrance to the dorms.

The couch in front of the fireplace was charmed to wish _Happy Christmas _to anyone who sat upon it.

A sixth year by the name Cortez had managed a set of snowmen that went about insulting people and then wishing them a _Happy Christmas_; the rather brilliant work of magic was currently insulting a third year boy whose name Draco had never bothered to know.

Draco moved through the common room avoiding the second snowman. Not a single Slytherin said a word to him, only one even acknowledged his passing and that was Nott. The said young man was reading a text curled in a black chair over by the bookshelf. The two men made eye contact and briefly nodded to each other before one turned back to his book and the other continued through the entrance/exit.

_**Dear Sirius,**_

_**It's the holiday and right now I'm stuck at Hogwarts. Ron's with Hermione skiing in Switzerland with her family. They had finally become a couple, but a couple of what I'm just not sure of. **_

_**Ginny's here, her mum's not doing so great, but Mrs. Weasley says it's just simple aging. Mr. Weasley was attacked last month by some rogue Death Eaters. They even showed the Dark Mark in the sky afterward. Some are speculating that it's the sign of a revival of Death Eater activity. But the majority overruled the Minister's idea that something was about to happen.**_

_**What do minds think these days? First they refused to believe Voldermort had returned. It was only when Fudge had admitted to seeing him in the Ministry and resulted in Lucius Malfoy being captured did the Minister change his stance. Within that summer break the wizard world was crisscrossed by a plethora of his sightings. Reports were just that until that November day when the Death Eaters had kidnapped the Minister and his personal assistant, Percy Weasley. In theory, they portkeyed the Minister away and Percy Weasley had been touching him at that moment. **_

_**The two of them had been missing up till the holiday when an owl had delivered a package to Albus Dumbledore here at Hogwarts. Remember it well I do.**_

_**Plain and simple box, tied with a ribbon. Within the box was an ear from both Fudge and Percy with a lock of hair. When opened the Dark Mark appeared above the Headmaster's chair for all to see. It was later known that the Dark Mark had been cast upon the lobby entrance inside the Ministry of Magic and on the front door to the Daily Prophet.**_

_**With a message both vague and clear, public out cry was immediate. Clamor erupted and by New Years, Arthur Weasley had taken the position of Minister of Magic.**_

_**Poor Mrs. Weasley. One son dead and her husband had been placed in the seat of danger. Those were very dangerous times.**_

_**But enough of the past for the moment. Now won't bring back all those who had died. Now, will not bring back you, Sirius.**_

_**War changes the lives of all those who were affected and shifts the perceptions held. And my perception has changed in that year that had passed. After the death of Albus Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall became Headmistress and Professor Snape had become Deputy Headmaster. With that new change, Snape now had different reasons to live.**_

_**But the most change I've noticed was in one Draco Malfoy. Say it, my second worst enemy for so many years. After that incident at the Ministry, yes the one where you had passed through the Veil, Lucius Malfoy had been placed in a coma after the passing of a certain magical decree last summer. That action was the last one Fudge would pass as Minister of Magic. **_

_**When the Dark Mark had appeared, my eyes immediately raced to the Slytherin table. Those at the table passed through a range of emotions and not for the first time that year my eye had become train on the Slytherin.**_

_**His eye was on his cup and his face was set. While the hall erupted in motion, Malfoy was still and it was then that I noticed he was stirring his dark drink without touching it or with his wand.**_

_**Everyone was in action and I just watched the blond. Oh Sirius! Finally after the longest moment in history, he lifted his cup to drink and his eye met mine. Even from the next table over I could see the glossiness of those pale gray eyes. His pale skin had a slight pink hue to it, and his lips were in an O while holding that cup in mid air. The Slytherin tipped his cup to me before blinking and drinking the contents.**_

_**By this time, Hermione had been pulling on my sleeve and telling me to move. I broke my eye contact with Malfoy to look at her and to stand. The Dark Mark was still in the air above the Headmaster's chair. Glancing back at the Slytherin table, I searched out Malfoy again, but the table was vacant, only half eaten Danishes and dirty plates remained.**_

_**Now that time has passed since the events of sixth year, I've had time to think about everything. Everything! Thanks to Ginny who is my closest confident, even over Ron and Hermione. Oh and Draco Malfoy whose inaction has given me strength to continue to live and to train.**_

_**I will continue to be the Boy-Who-Lived and I will accept that fate. Whatever fate may have in store for me now after last years' events . But whatever happens, I will not forget to live and maybe even get to love.**_

_**The future is uncertain, but whatever happens, I want...**_

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Harry Potter slammed his personal journal shut. He'd heard the soft breaths of someone nearby. Without any shame, he would admit he had been writing with blinders on. Curled up in a nice chair by the fire with a blanket wrapped around him, the Boy-Who-Lived had the book propped upon his bent knees writing.

Perched right above him was Ginny Weasley with her arms crossed over the back of the chair. Her face held a light and emotion that had become his light. The youngest Weasley had remained at Hogwarts for the holiday. Her red hair's clipped back away from her face to let the bottom waterfall onto her shoulder.

"I know what you want," Ginny leaned in and whispered to him. Her voice held a teasing tone and a succulent promise.

Harry turned his head so he was inches away from her nose. They stared into each others' eyes for what seemed like an eternity.

"Then you know you can't provide," Harry whispered back in his most husky voice.

The two started giggling, the smiles lighting up both of their faces. The redhead reached down and lightly slapped Harry on the cheek.

"Mr. Potter, to think that you've been leading me on for all this time," Ginny said with a genuine smile.

"Just for the attention," Harry intoned back bringing the smile into his eyes.

Before Harry could blink, Ginny had pulled her wand and whispered an incantation that made the chair spill its contents.

The look of surprise on Harry's face was priceless. Where was Colin when he was needed? Ginny stood to the side of the righted chair with a triumphant look and stance above him.

"That was for dumping me," Ginny said in her most serious voice.

"You dumped me!" Harry said in a parallel serious voice while clutching the journal in his hands.

"You're right, I just did," Ginny laughed and held a hand out to Harry to pull him up. But instead Harry pulled her down into the floor, into his arms specifically. He wrapped his arms around her.

"What would I have done with out you, Ginerva Weasley?" Harry whispered into her ear.

"Harry James Potter," small pause, "would have killed himself." Ginny spoke low and directly into his ear. This part was directed only to one person because only one person knew this. She hugged him back.

"You're right," Harry whispered back.

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The hallways between the dungeons and the Great Hall held few people. Draco was making his way outdoors, but on a personal principle, the blond always passed by the Hall to spy upon a certain green eyed Gryffindor. Not that Draco would ever have admitted that he notices these things, but he watches and had noticed the changes through the second half of last year.

Swiftly he passed the entry to the Great Hall while noticing all four tables with a small twist of his head. Being able to take in every detail of a room with a single glance was a skill his father has taught him many years ago. It was a skill he was always thankful for learning.

The Great Hall held its usual Christmas spirit. Multiple trees were decorated: one for each house and the main one behind the teachers table. Each house had decorated a tree in its respective colors. The silver and green tree had a star placed upon it personally by Draco.

Second, the star upon the scarlet and gold tree had been placed by the green eyed Gryffindor; in fact, Draco had watched green eyes delicately levitate the star upon the tree, the said face in a sweet concentration.

Ravenclaws' had been placed by Mandy Bucklehurst. And that last house had been crowned by Hannah Abbot, who is also Head Girl this year. Head Boy this year is Anthony Goldstein, a Ravenclaw.

After a brief glance, Draco did not see that green eyed Gryffindor. Pockets of each respected house sat at their own tables with the largest group being at the Hufflepuff table. At the Head Table his Godfather was listening to a one sided conversation from the new DADA for the year. The look upon Severus's face was one of very hidden amusement.

Wrapping the muffler around his neck, the Slytherin had reached his destination. It was a doorway out to the snow, out to the cold, and out to an imagined freedom.

Second, he pulled the cap up over his head and ears.

In the distance, the Entry Way clock struck two.

There was enough time between the early lunch he had taken in his Prefects room and the dinner in a few hours to accomplish what he had planned.

Finally, the Slytherin opened the door and a blast of ice cold air struck what minimal skin showed. Everything is blanketed in white snow! It covered the trees, the ground, and everywhere the eye could see, all the way down to the lake.

The snow wasn't fresh, but it wasn't an old snow.

It wasn't as good a snow as it was during the Slytherin-Gryffindor snowball fight of a few weeks ago just after the last mid-term.

Grudgingly, Draco would admit that Gryffindor won the war, but not without a couple of good strategic moves planned by himself personally.

However, his favorite strategic move of the day happened after the match. The Slytherin had strategically knocked down green eyes and landed on top of the said Gryffindor.

The rest of the seventh years had cast daggers, but Draco saw the blush and glint in those green eyes. It was the same glint that Draco himself held.

The move was well worth it.

All those layers were well necessary, comfort is a must for the amount of time Draco planned to spend outside. Blue skies were nil and white had permeated the sky as if one giant cloud.

To make his way down the snow covered path was an easy task. He simply charmed his shoes to walk upon the snow. Said charm was one he had learned in extracurricular studies. Draco had found such charms very advantageous over the long Scottish winters.

Paying only minimal attention to his steps, Draco knew the path down to the water's edge like a charm.

The weather is a dead cold. No wind blew, not a thing stirred, not even the fox that Draco knew that lived by the tree he had just passed.

Even the Forbidden Forest in the distance was white but still remained dark and ominious.

Step by step, the Slytherin left foot prints in the snow. Somehow, Draco knew that the same prints will be there on his return up, for a fresh snow was not expected that afternoon.

Finally, he arrived at his intended destination. In front of him is a tree on the bank of the lake. A couple years ago he'd spied on green eyes studying with friends under this very tree.

Since that time, Draco had found the tree to be an advantageous place to dream and make his destination as the reference point along the lake. It had also become symbolic because it was the place Draco longed to hold such familiarity with green eyes, even to the point of a recurring dream with him under that tree.

He placed a gloved hand upon that tree, as if he were able to sense or see some of the memories the tree held. Said tree was covered with snow; every branch covered completely. With one light jostle the tree would go bald.

The lake had frozen over into one giant ice shield. From his bank to the distant bank, it was completely covered in snow, at least a few inches.

It was anyone's guess as to where the Giant Squid went when the lake froze over, but it was rumored that it went and visited his distant cousin the Loch Ness monster. Really.

Pulling out his wand with his gloved fingers, he whispered an incantation that he had picked up for the winter months. Simply said, the adapted wind spell blew the snow off the ice cap from here to the distant bank.

With a huge gust of wind, the snow was displaced in a mini blizzard off to the sides. It was as if a giant muggle snow globe had been shaken and the snow settled away from his part of the lake.

Next, the young Malfoy heir stepped down to where the ice overlapped onto the shoreline. Pointing his wand down at his trainers, Draco transfigured them into a pair of ice skates. Similar to a boot, they had a cursive DM on the outside leg and the Slytherin shield on the inside leg. His pants had automatically covered the tops of his skates.

The transfiguration he'd learned in his first year. While visiting some relatives in France during his Christmas break when he was a first year, an older cousin had taught him the trick and how to skate. It had become one of those muggle things he enjoyed.

His father had never learned of this love.

Every year since, Draco ice skated during the cold winter by himself. In those few times Draco actually went home for Christmas, the young Malfoy always made time to skate around those times. Ice skating had become a tradition.

It was the main reason Draco went out.

No one had ever accompanied him out to this private pleasure.

Slipping his wand back up his sleeve, the young Malfoy stepped onto the ice. Even though he only skated once or twice a year, Draco had become a skilled skater.

Ice skating gave Malfoy a chance to be alone and not have any concerns: no worries out here, just him and the winter around him. His mind could wander on whatever subject he wished. With each simple movement, Draco felt himself relaxing mentally.

Last year, Draco had skated the day after Christmas; that day was forever scared by the Dark Mark appeared above the Headmaster's chair.

He'd skated in an attempt to forget how much his life had changed.

His dad was in a magical coma, no longer a presence, an influence, or a factor in how he lived his life.

Despite what other people might have believed, Draco did love his father and wanted his father's approval.

So, the Slytherin studied to be top in the class, become a Seeker on the team, accepted being a Prefect, and had become top of the Inquisitorial Squad under that bitch Umbridge, not that he liked that bitch anymore than anyone else did.

One minor reason was that she had banned the Gryffindor Seeker from his team. His only real competition had been exiled from the game; after all, that was a constant goal: to beat Harry Potter.

When the Dark Mark had appeared, Draco had been lost in memories about his father.

Learning to ride a broom.

Falling out of a tree on the manor proper and his father reprimanding him and then kissing the bruise better.

Spending time as a family with his relatives in France before he started Hogwarts.

When sitting upon his knee listening to tales of the Dark Lord and the Boy-Who-Lived, Draco's admiration for Harry Potter had first been seeded. When the boy had rejected his hand for a Weasley, Draco made it his lot in life to still be a part of the boy's life, not as a friend but as one to spice up his life.

Just as the Great Hall erupted in motion, Draco had lifted his coffee and was surprised to make eye contact with the boy. Grey eyes met the green orbs and Draco felt his entire world stop.

Even if it only lasted for a few seconds, Draco knew that the boy had just seen something privy to his soul.

Draco had tipped the coffee toward the Gryffindor in a salute. Then that Granger girl pulled his attention away and Draco used the moment to follow the orders of returning to the dorms.

Christmas had been just a week after that snowball fight and when Draco had brought himself upon the boy. He had been quite amused at the look upon Potter's face with Draco face less then a foot above him. Potter's friends had pulled the Slytherin off the other boy and they pushed him away, but not without cracking an insult at him. A slight blush upon Potter's face was the only thing Draco cared about. He was just so cute with his glasses askew and that blush. The moment was well worth it.

It was with that thought of cute that Draco spun back around to face Hogwarts and that tree. He slowly skated backwards facing the shore with about a hundred meters separating him from the shore.

Twisting his right foot slightly, Draco felt a difference in the ice beneath him.

With a movement of his left foot, Draco heard the cracking of the ice beneath him. Changing his balance to still his movement, he felt himself freeze.

His eyes widened as the ice beneath his skates splintered.

Before he could blink, he felt the ice cold water sting his eyes and face.

It was like nothing he had ever felt before.

It enveloped him in an icy embrace.

Weighed down by his cloaks' heaviness, Draco moved his arms to try and do something.

But he found he could do nothing.

The cold invaded his lungs and the Slytherin blacked out.

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Yes, it's another story from Iris Wood. But with this one I promise to finish it. It has great potential. Many chapters are planned out and about a total of three parts to the series, which I haven't thought of a name yet.

I've only ice skated a couple times in my life, after all, I live in Central Florida. (Lots of free time on my hands due to the hurricane to write this). Sorry that most of this fic is Draco centric, but I can assure readers that Harry will play a very large role in the series.

Any errors with this story are mine.

Please forgive me if the spacing is a little off. I work better with paragraphs and professional writing. Separating paragraphs in the style of fan fiction was a little hard for me. That may also be why when my other fics are examined, the style maybe a little unconventional.

Before anybody asks about more details on the Sixth year events, things will be revealed at my own leisure.

No, Ginny and Harry were never a couple. It could be said that they are beyond friends.

If there was any doubt in anybody's mind, Sirius Black is dead. At the moment .

Please, PLEASE hit the little review button down below.


	2. Death is Only a Beginning COMPLETE

Title: Broken Ice

Chapter 2: **Death is But a Beginning**

Rating: R, just to be on the safe side. Some minor reoccurrences of fcuk. I have written harder, just none of that stuff is posted anywhere. No, I'm not embarrassed, not really.

Disclaimer: You know the drill, cannon characters are not mine. Ones that are unfamiliar to the basic cannon are mine. Hn, maybe there was an easier way to say that.

Pairing: Future DM/HP slash. Right now, just wicked thoughts . Never has been or never will be HP/GW, they are just on that level beyond. Oh, and also currently repeated reference to RW/HG: they do not come into the story for a few chapters.

Summary: Harry hangs with Ginny. Draco meets his ancestors while 'dead'. Harry breathes life into Draco.

**Author's Note:** Hiya! I hope everybody isn't mad at me for doing this, but this will be the final repost of chapter 2, meaning **THIS IS THE COMPLETE CHAPTER 2! ** I have finally written the first part of chapter 3 and will tend to typing it tonight and over the weekend. Expect the first part of chapter 3 within the next few days.

**------------------------------------------**

**_Part 1:_ Pillow Talk**

"Do you think I should tell them I'm gay?" Harry Potter asked Ginny Weasley. The said Gryffindors were stretched out over Harry's bed. Between the two of them they had transfigured clothes that had been carelessly discarded onto the floor into more pillows which they had propped up against the head board.

"Harry, honey, we've just finished painting our toe nails. How they not figure out some small hint?" Ginny said, not intending an answer. Indeed they had just finished painting their toenails scarlet and gold on alternating toes and were currently letting them dry.

Ginny had purchased the colors the last time they went into Muggle London. Actually her father had to talk to the Muggle prime minister that day and the two of them spent the day about. One of the things Minister of Magic Arthur Weasley ( A/N what can I say, I'm a promoter;) had been promoting was a beginning of a cooperation between wizards and Muggles. Arthur always liked to say, if things got really bad, it's good to have some contingency plan. Within a month of the new school year starting, a decision was made by the High Wizengamont to promote a beginning of some level of understanding without expressing their true numbers or strength. The Muggle prime minister had only had contact with Arthur and about four others.

Harry had joined Ginny on that trip and the two went on a shopping spree. Between the two of them, about a hundred Galleons was spent, with Harry paying the bill. He saw it as a birthday present to himself, after all, he was now seventeen. Money was well spent on birthday gifts for the year, school supplies, Christmas, and maybe an additional bribe for Ron and Hermione. Included, however, was a silver serpent necklace that he always wore around his neck and secretly hoped he would be able to pass onto a certain Slytherin.

The Boy-Who-Lived flexed his toes. Next to him, Ginny's smaller ones copied the movement.

"Sometimes I think that people won't accept me for who I have become." Harry paused and turned slightly to the girl next to him. "They still expect me to be their hero. It's like I'm the big strong man who's expected to protect the innocent. I just want to live my life."

Ginny placed a hand upon his. "I thought our friendship has taught you that whatever happens, I'll be there with you. As will Hermione and Ron, once he finishes pulling his own head out of his ass."

Harry couldn't resist his upper lip from curling in amusement, but the moment was short.

"You don't need to live up to any ones expectations but your own. Besides," she gave the tiniest of shrugs, "with the events of last summer, you are no longer the trump card. Voldermort," she stressed his name, "is dead."

"As are a lot of other people," Harry spoke so softly that Ginny almost didn't catch it. "I should have done something to prevent Ron and Hermione from going," he finished in a low tone.

"There was nothing you could have done. They made their own decisions," Ginny spoke a wisdom beyond her years.

"But the blame was on me," Harry said, lowering his stare to his freshly painted nails.

Ginny moved in the bed so she sat next to him and proceeded to fold her sleep panted legs underneath her. She had dealt with this Harry before, many times. Especially when Ron and Hermione were not there.

"Harry Potter," she said in her most serious commanding voice, "look at me." She took a hold of his face and turned it toward herself. Harry looked up at her. "You are not responsible for any of those deaths, including of Dumbledore's." Her face was serious.

"Say it with me Harry, I am not responsible," she said low and clear, staring him straight into the eye.

"I am not responsible" Harry spoke.

"I am my own person."

"I am my own person."

"And I shall fuck who ever I want to."

"And I will fuck who ever the fuck I want to fuck," Harry shouted out. Thankfully no one else was in the room. The barest of smiles graced his lips.

"Watch your language, Mr. Potter," Ginny said sounding a lot like her mother reprimanding the twins.

Harry managed to look indignant. "You said it first," he pouted, sticking his bottom lip out and giving her the look.

Her lips curved upward. "So I did."

"Language, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said back. This time a full smile crossed his lips and eyes. "Thanks, Gin" he said and patted her on the arm.

Ginny settled back down against the mattress. This time, however, she settled on to her stomach while clutching a pillow. Her legs extended would reach over the foot board, so she occasionally scissor kicked them in the air.

"So, do you think I should tell them?" He asked again. He reached out and patted her on the head as if she were his canine companion.

"That's up to you," Ginny said. "Maybe if you knew their feelings on the issue before you opened up." She paused. "How would they respond?" She looked up at him. "My brother is quite hot headed."

"My jaw remembers," Harry reached up and rubbed the left side very softly.

"He was still thinking he could make my own decisions for me. My next oldest brother, and your once best friend, punched you in the jaw warning you to stay away from me."

It had happened right toward the end of last school year, Harry had been an emotional wreck.

"My friends were not there for me when I needed them," his voice lowered.

Ginny reached over and patted his flannel covered knee to bring him out of a funk before he fell into another one.

Harry gave that small brief smile to her. "This year has been so stressed between the three of us. Hermione has been the linking force between the two of us." The green eyed boy gestured wildly for a moment before drawing a knee to himself and resting a hand onto it. "I'm surprised that he has not accused me of trying to steal his girlfriend," he sighed.

"Maybe it is a sign of things going back to the way they were," Ginny said, kicking her legs into the air. "I like to think that my older brother will be accepting that you desire men."

"But he may not be so accepting that the boy I desire had been our worst enemy for five years straight," Harry finished and used his hands again to gesture wildly with the pun on straight.

Ginny snickered lightly.

"To me, he has proven himself over the last months that he is nothing truly like his father." He lowered his leg and steepled (A/N Forgive me, but I'm not sure if that's a word, but I don't know what else to call it) his other. "Without his father to dictate his life, he's a new man." His eyes met Ginny's.

"Paying attention much I see, Mr. Potter," Ginny let her lips turn up in a smirk, not trademarked. She rolled onto her back next to him so she could tilt her head and look at him. "Classes with Slytherin are a lot more pleasant, I take it."

He dipped his head a little, "Aside from the fact the only Slytherins this year are him and that Nott fellow."

Ginny smiled that knowing smile.

"He is in only a few of my classes. Advanced DADA, Advanced Potions, and Advanced Transfiguration," Harry said as he pushed his glasses back up his nose.

"Don't forget Muggle Studies," Ginny reminded him. Starting this past school year, as part of that understanding between wizards and Muggles, all years third and up were required to take Muggle Studies.

Harry nodded his assent. For the briefest moment, he smiled in memory of a previous class where the two Slytherins played a newly learned Poker game with the Gryffindors.

"While I imagine myself being accepted into Auror training," he continued and left that memory behind, "or maybe playing professional Quidditch, I can't imagine what study he will be heading into."

"Try potions," Ginny supplied. "To be a Potions Master."

"That is the answer that everyone else would give in relation to his future." Harry wiggled his toes again. "I've always wondered what kind of future he sees for himself." His green eyes unfocused and he got a funny look that spread across his entire features. "A future I want to be a part of." He spoke loud and clear with no mistake or no wavering.

Ginny rolled again, this time onto her side with one of her legs onto Harry's. "Great potential," was all Ginny cryptically muttered. "One instance I can think of suggests that there is a future between you two. He seemed very interested last year." She waggled her eyes at him.

"The snowball fight," Harry remembered fondly.

"No accident from my point of view," Ginny sing-songed.

"Landed right on top of me, he did." Harry's face lit up. "Knocked my glasses askew and I was able to feel his hot breath on my face. It was as if his eyes looked deep into my soul. His weight pressed down onto mine and for a moment, I felt anything but trapped." A blush creeps across his face. "It was the most intimate moment I've ever shared." He moved and stroked her red hair and some of the feeling lessened. "And then Ron pulled him off me and the expected insults flew." He sighed. "If only things had been different last year, we could have dated." Harry's face suddenly fell as memories started their terrible film in his head. "But things turned out different."

Ginny reached up and flicked his nose to bring him out of his moment. Harry retaliated by pulling on her hair.

"Thanks Ginny," Harry said, smiling in thanks. "So, I was thinking of making it my New Year's Resolution to pursue that course of action."

"New Years what?" Ginny asked.

"Muggle term. It's a promise made on December 31st at 11:59 pm for the new year. It could be seen as something wanted to accomplish. For a better definition, it's in the Muggle Studies text."

The red head laughed. "How very Hermionish of you, Mr. Potter."

"After all, NEWTS is in about five months, never to early to be ahead." Harry spoke in his most Hermione voice. "I'm so surprised that Hermione even took the time to go skiing in Switzerland. I imagine Ron's having a blast."

"It was about time they started dating," Ginny said.

Harry nodded. "Ron's face just lights up whenever she is in the room," Harry said. "She'll keep him in line."

"Especially if he has some problem with your choice in crushes," Ginny added.

"Ginny," he squealed before covering his mouth upon realizing that he had been doing it. "Oh, now look at me, I sound like I've got some school crush."

"Or more like Colin Creevy when he gets you in a more spectacular pose," Ginny interjected. "Like those pictures he got five Galleons for," she mumbled very lowly.

Harry chose not to comment on that first part, but the second mumbling, he chose to pretend not to have heard at all. He pushed her away from him. "Am I still even sure he still has in interest?"

"Don't be so daft," the youngest Weasley said, while moving to sit next to him in a crossed leg position. "It is rather hard to miss how he always searches you out in the Great Hall. We both know that those occasional snide remarks are just to get a rise out of you."

Harry muttered, "Not the kind of rise I was hoping for."

Ginny gave a brilliant smile; she had heard him. "Just last week," she continued, "when the houses were decorating the trees, it was hard to miss him watching you." Ginny picked up a pillow and hugged it to her chest. "In fact, I distinctly remember hearing him say that he was glad to have some real competition in Quidditch."

"When did he say that?" Harry asked, casting her a look.

Smiling triumphantly, Ginny took the pillow and hit him on the chest.

"When Gryffindor played Ravenclaw, the first practice match. He said it out loud, but I don't think he intended any one to hear it, much less me."

The Boy-Who-Lived sat up across from her in a similar fashion. "Yeah, I've always one upped him in that sense, except for 5th year and those last couple games in 6th year."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd take that as a sign that he shows an interest."

Harry blushed, seriously blushed.

Ginny laughed. "You're cute, Mr. Potter."

"Too bad I'm gay then." Harry laughed and let what emotion he held out. The two of them sat there in a comfortable silence for a few minutes.

"Let's go for a walk by the lake before dinner," he abruptly said, swinging his legs around to the edge to stand. "There we can talk some more." He reached out a hand to the red head.

Ginny took it and together they stood at the side. "I am hardly dressed for the cold." She gestured to her sleep pants and white top.

Pulling out his time piece that he always kept nearby, after all, it had been a gift from Dumbledore, he examined the time. It's just after 2. "How about we meet back in the Common Room in 10 minutes and then we go."

"Ten minutes to get ready?" Ginny said, holding a hand up to her mouth in mock theatrics.

"Ten minutes," he said walking her to the door. "Be there." He then proceeded to push her out the door.

"Ten minutes," Ginny called back and moved down the stairs.

"Is there an echo in here?" Harry called out to her retreating back.

---------------------------

_**Part 2:**_**Heir to the Malfoy name, power and prestige.**

"Draco," a guy's voice spoke softly.

Draco Malfoy felt a warmth upon his face that caused the blond to shift his face away from it. The warmth spread across his entire body as if enveloping him in a snug blanket.

"Draco," the man said again.

This time a strong hand grasped Draco's cheek. The other hand then pushed back the hair on the young blonds forehead. A moment later, the same hand raised and let a slap fall across that cheek. "Damnit boy!"

Awareness came back to the young Malfoy as his eyes shot open to the face of an unknown man.

"Wake up!" The man said as he drew back that hand again to strike that cheek a second time.

"If you want to keep that hand sir, I suggest you do not do it." Draco's eyes narrowed with threat at the man kneeling above him. Blinking a few times to clear his orientation, Draco looked more closely at the man above him. Black hair, but the same Malfoy nose on that face.

"There's that Malfoy arrogance that comes with the name." The other man smirked while lowering his hand.

"Who the fuck are you?" Draco asked as he again stared at the man, however odd the angle might be.

"And such language from our youth," the other man tsked softly.

Using his hands and arms, he managed to brace himself up into a sitting position. He looked around trying to figure out where he was at. In the nearby distance Draco saw something he didn't believe. It was Malfoy Manor! But these grounds he did not recognize. On this side of the manor, instead of a garden that he had helped his mother plant, there was a courtyard with a small pond by which he was currently sitting next to.

"What?" Draco questioned more to himself than to the man beside him. Pulling his legs up, he sat more comfortable. The pond next to him sparkled blue and reflected the sunlight. Above him the sun shone in a bright ball in blue skies. No cool British breeze, just solid warmth that did not make him sweat.

"How did I get to the Manor? Last I remember I was at Hogwarts. It was most defiantly winter. The manor never looked like this. I have no memory of it." Draco rambled until the other guy placed a hand in front of him.

"Malfoy's do Not ramble!" The other guy affronted the younger man. "And it is not your memory, it is mine."

Draco's eyes said what jaw dropping would have accomplished.

"You see, Draco Malfoy, you are no longer among the living." The other man reached out and stroked a hand across the Malfoy's cheek.

Draco felt the warmth of the touch and jerked back, but managed to simultaneously faint backwards onto the ground.

"What type of generation is this?" The man exclaimed out loud, throwing his hands up into the air. The young man was once again laying on the ground.

After several seconds of watching the young Malfoy heir, the raven haired man stood up and walked over to the pond. Pulling on his panted legs, he kneeled down and dipped his fingers into the water. After swirling it for a few seconds, he moved back up to the young blond on the ground and flicked the water onto his face.

Two grey eyes shot open, and a single word was upon his lips, "Frozen." His whole body shivered in memory. But after a moment, he felt the warmth upon his body and face. Tilting his face toward the sky he breathed deeply.

"What happened to the old code of Malfoy's never fainting?" The raven haired man mumbled more to himself than to Draco. He moved to stand above the young Malfoy.

"In times of dire circumstance, Malfoy's have been known to exhibit behavior less known to their kind." Draco maneuvered himself back into a sitting position, this time with his legs crossed under him.

The other man arched his eyebrows in a very Malfoy manner (A/N fine, I dropped the manor spelling.). "Death is a dire circumstance," he quipped.

"Never expected it, always so careful I was," Draco mumbled.

"Ah yes. Ever since your aunt's boys taught you to," he paused for a second, "ice skate, I believe the term is for it, you've been skating around Christmas. But mustn't let dear old daddy find out. Some part of you still feared that he would beat the Muggle tendency out of you." The other man accurately spoke.

"How do you know about that?" Draco's eyes narrowed at him, not betraying the feelings he felt inside. Somehow, Draco knew the answer to the question.

"I am dead." He accentuated with his hands each sentence. "I know all. I see all. With each passing generation, I watch from above."

"An angel?" Draco quietly asked.

The raven haired man snorted loudly. "Hardly angelic." A smile crossed his lips. "I am just an observer of my family." The other man dropped to be sitting next to Draco.

"Family? Then where's the blond hair?" Draco sneered. Outside of his cousins, the only Malfoy's he knew were blonds. All of the hanging pictures in the manor that he knew of had blond hair.

"This dark as raven hair color comes from my grandmothers side," he said while running a hand through his hair and pulled on it for the young man to see. "Besides, your father hid away those portraits."

Once again, Draco's eyes went wide. That hair was a shade that he had seen many past days.

"My grandmother was one Elizabeth Potter," he used his hand to sweep it around in a very Malfoy manner, one that Draco had seen his father use.

Draco snickered lightly.

The other Malfoy shot him a look. "The Potters were an old prestigious family. After all, all the pureblood families are interrelated somewhere along the line. It was back when the Potters were highly regarded, less than two hundred years ago. Now the lines are shrinking and purebloods are intermarrying with other purebloods too close to their own line and causing birth defects including squibs."

"So then mine and Harry Potter's genes are not that far off in the scheme of things," Draco exhaled. "My father has been going off on someone who is genetically our cousin."

"Not that close," the other man said. "Elizabeth's youngest brother is the descent line directly to Harry Potter."

"Always knew my father was a fool," Draco mumbled off.

"Lucius Malfoy's my grandson," the other man sneered. "He had not gained those power hungry ambitions from his father. In my day, and the way Lucius was raised, Malfoys did not need to prove themselves to anyone, not even their own parents. It was an unspoken thing that family would be there for each other and no matter what happened, family was the connection. Lucius felt he needed someone's approval, and that someone turned out the be the worst kind of man. My son, Lucien, raised your father , gave him the family life only worthy of a Malfoy. And what does Lucius do?" that last sentence mumbled off; Draco did not hear it.

"I never knew my grandfather, Lucien Malfoy," Draco said, reciting his version of what his father had told him. "He and my grandmother died when I was very young."

Now the other man snorted, "That's what your father told you, indeed." Anger rose in the other Malfoy's eyes. "Lucius Malfoy killed both of his parents within days after joining with that bastard. It was not a nice death, as his blood had resisted many attempts to be killed. Malfoy's have long life spans." His voice broke for a moment before letting anger into his words. "Lucius Malfoy killed my son!" The elder Malfoy slammed his hand into a nearby tree.

Draco took in what his ancestor was saying, quietly making little mental notes on certain points to talk about later. Listening to his ancestor, the Malfoy heir felt his blood bubble. He had not been privy to such information about his family. "Damned fool following another's damned foolish teaching."

"Twisted and manipulated by trash," the elder spat out.

"Yes, it is rather unlucky that all my inheritance would be prevalent in someone who was so mentally unstable," a new voice chorused from behind the tree.

Moving to the left, the new figure revealed himself. Black robes, open at the chest, that connected down the front with buttons and no shoes. Crossing his arms, the stranger leaned back against the tree. Blond hair cascaded over his shoulders, and with a simple flick of his head, the hair was behind his shoulder. His posture was that of relaxed, but the look upon his face spoke volumes of anger. He had a smooth, youthful face not hardened by any lines. Beautiful green eyes the same color as the grass, but with yellow around the irises. And pale skin.

Draco watched as the elder Malfoy sprung up and quickly dropped to his knees in front of the new arrival.

"Damn it Corbin Malfoy, I hate it when people do that." The blond kicked off from the tree and dropped to his knees inches away from the Malfoy elder. The new arrival placed his right palm over the heart of Corbin Malfoy. It was an old secret sign that only a handful of people have known through the millennia. "And as the most recent generation to have the privilege, you should consider yourself no less than my equal."

The new arrival pulled the other Malfoy into a hug. "I have been watching since the young dragon arrived." He gestured over to Draco. "He did not even know your name until I just spoke it."

Corbin felt a light tinge of embarrassment on his cheeks. The two men held out a hand to pull the young Malfoy up.

Draco was pulled into a standing position and he observed the two men.

"Forgive me, Draco," Corbin said. "I am called Corbin Malfoy, born to Perciles and Claudia, the oldest of six children, and the last generation to bear the mark." Reaching over to the newest arrival, Corbin tugged a little on the black robe to reveal a small black symbol over his heart, and then tugged on his own cloth to reveal a duplicate mark. "I was born late last century." He ran a hand through his own hair. He did not want to reveal much at this moment. Turning back to Draco, he continued, "I am your great grandfather."

Once again, Draco buried into his thoughts this conversation and must remember to ask about it later. Letting a smile that he need not have forced grace his lips, Draco embraced the other man. "Now I see how you knew of the Malfoy traditions."

"Every one held dear to my heart except this pureblood shit that your father is so righteous in believing," Corbin scoffed. "That's something your father chose to embrace."

"Manipulations of my followings," the other man barked.

"And may I present to you, Draco Malfoy," Corbin took the hand of the youth and placed it into the hand of the new arrival. "The most noble Salaazar Slytherin."

Draco felt his eyes and mouth widen.

"Surprised?" Corbin quipped. "You were right. You are a descendant of Slytherin and much more of a desirable heir to the Slytherin name and power."

Still holding Slytherin's hand, Draco felt all words leave his head as he just stared wide eyes at the legendary Salaazar Slytherin.

_**-------------------------**_

**_Part 3:_ Not the Only Couple**

Harry Potter impatiently tapped his foot. The fire in the common room was starting to make him uncomfortable and someone had in the short time he was gone, enchanted stuffed animals to sing carols badly. Sitting in the same chair as before, he pulled out the pocket watch he had received from Dumbledore, he examined the time. Ginny was now officially late.

"Ruddy women always late," Harry mumbled while slipping the pocket watch back into his pocket. He had dressed into his outdoor clothes in under five minutes and came out here to sit and wait. And wait. And wait. Actually, he had just pulled on a pair of jeans over his flannel pants and a pair of thicker socks warmed his feet in the snow shoes. Under his shirt for the Chuddley Cannons, he'd put on a thermal long sleeve. Over that was a pullover for this band, Templar Nights, and a black trench coat that he left open. On his lap were fur lined dragon hide gloves, his snow cap; his wand rested on the arm of the chair. Plus he had taken the time to run a brush through his hair.

After batting with his hand this hippogriff that was annoying him, he slipped off his glasses and used his wand to clean his glasses and cast a charm which prevented them from steaming up.

"Just so cute without your glasses," Ginny said as she strolled over to his chair and leaned in to ruffle his hair.

He shifted out of her reach and slipped his glasses back on. "Ten minutes," he sing songed.

"Ten minutes to get ready? Are you insane?" Ginny smiled brightly. She had slipped on long black skirt with black and red tights underneath, black knee high snow boots, a white shirt just visible under a light red jumper, and a black trench coat similar to Harry's. Her hair was pulled back into a tail and her Gryffindor muffler was just loosely strung around her neck. A navy blue snow cap and matching mittens were in her left hand.

Stuffing her mittens in her inner pocket next to her wand, she reached out her right hand to pull her friend up.

Harry accepted her hand and stood. He stuffed his gloves and hand into his inner pocket and pushed his wand up his sleeve.

"I was just starting to sweat" Harry said to the younger red head.

Said red head stifled a smile and slipped into place next to him as they exited through the portrait. The duet strode down the stair cases before they moved. At the foot of the stairs were the fellow Seventh years Seamus Finnigan and his boy friend, and one of the few graduating Ravenclaws, Anthony Goldstein. Goldstein had not gone when the summons had spread. In his words, he wanted to live free, and not as a boot liker. Maybe some would have called him a traitor if that battle had gone differently. Said Gryffindor and Ravenclaw were currently embraced with the slightly shorter Finnigan nuzzling slightly taller Goldstein.

The Ravenclaw gave Finnigan a nudge and motioned with his head towards the duet coming down the stairs. A satisfied Seamus looked toward the duet. Goldstein gave a nod in their direction and made eye contact with each of them. After a whisper toward his bf, he spun himself in his bf arms so his back was pressed into Anthony's. Seamus reached out his hand to Harry in a very Muggle fashion.

Harry reached out and grasped the offered hand. "Seamus, Goldstein," he offered in greeting.

Seamus let go and raised a hand in welcome to Ginny, who mumbled an "Afternoon," in greeting, lightly grasping the hand. Goldstein wrapped his arms around Seamus's waist in possession.

Ginny and Harry shared a look, both their trains of thought lingered in the same direction.

"Rather nice to be able to do that without everyone breathing down your neck," Harry commented to the two of them.

"Nice to have less people around, less chance of getting caught for doing naughty things." Seamus replied while interlocking his hand with the one around his waist. Nearby, a painting sneezed.

Ginny went as far as to waggle her eyebrows at the pair.

"So how long have the two of you been going out, again?" Ginny asked, slipping next to them, to look at their reflections in the frosty glass window.

"Seven months," Goldstein quietly answered.

"Ever since Ireland played England during the summer," Seamus supplied by finishing the thought.

"Amazing that in the entire crowd, we found each other," Goldstein continued.

"And I lost a bet, so I went out on a date with him," Seamus chuckled.

"The bugger just got under my skin," Goldstein leaned down slightly and nibbled at his ear.

Seamus scrunched his nose in response, letting a little giggle escape his lips. "And now you wouldn't have it any other way." He turned slightly and the pair shared a brushing of lips and nose.

Ginny snickered slightly to herself over their antics while making a glance over at her partner. Something seemed to register in Harry's eyes. Maybe it was longing. Maybe it was hope.

"Where the two of you off to?" Seamus inquired, successfully bringing Ginny's attention back to the pair.

Harry did not fail to notice that both boys scanned him from head to toe, neither did Ginny. "Out for a walk before dinner" he answered.

"It's ruddy cold out there" Goldstein said, pulling his bf closer.

"We're ready for the freezing," Ginny said gesturing slightly with her hands, calling attention more to Harry than herself.

"We've noticed," Seamus whispered. "If you want to warm up later, we'll be in my bed before dinner." Seamus gave a wink, while Goldstein gave a slow sultry smile from his spot next to his bf.

Harry, in all his cuteness blushed and started to sputter and Ginny quickly came to his supposed rescue.

"Maybe we can schedule that in" Ginny said straight faced looking at her friend.

Harry blushed harder under their gaze, but he stopped sputtering.

This time Ginny fully came to his rescue. "Harry and I must be on out way now, boys." Ginny raised a hand out to Harry and pulled on his hand. "See you two later, Seamus, Anthony." She started to walk away, with Harry in tow.

"Later guys," Harry intoned as he was pulled by them and gave a short wave with his free hand as Ginny pulled him off.

Both boys gave a laugh as the duet exited the staircase and into the main hall. Goldstein moved Seamus a little and gestured with their joined hands up the stairs. Up they went.

Ginny finally let go of Harry's hand as they entered the Great Hall. Venturing a look over at her friend, she was relieved that Harry now had this wordless grin across his face.

They continued walking. Both knew their next words would be shared in the imagined privacy of the outside.

Moments later, they reached the exit. They stopped to put on the last of the outdoor gear and snapped up their trench coats. Finally without a word, they gave a nod to each other and Harry pushed open the door.

The first thing Harry felt was the icy touch upon his cheek. He held the door open for Ginny, who slipped through. Harry followed and closed the door.

After a moment of looking about, Ginny finally spoke. "I think they were serious." The red head linked her arm into Harry's.

Once again, the Boy who Lived's cheeks were red, not only from the cold, but from embarrassment. "I Can't believe you'd imply that I would enjoy such attention from the only full and out couple in the school."

As the two walked on, Ginny had to laugh. "Honey, I know your little sex fantasies extend beyond one blond Slytherin Prince."

"Right, it's bad enough I got the Malfoy virus. But even worse, I got the gay disease. Watch out Ginny, I'll sneeze on you and spread the gay boy hormones onto you."

Ginny reached out a hand and lightly hit the other Gryffindor on the intertwined arm. "I fully recognize my position as being permanently in your life as long as we live."

Harry rolled his eyes as he trudged on through the snow. "Like I'd ever get rid of you. You've become a permanent fixture, don't worry. You saved me from loosing myself." He smiled.

"Just know that I'll be there for every Christmas to annoy the partner and watch the children," Ginny joyfully intoned.

"I admit that I want kids in the future, and a career, and someone I can snuggle up to." Harry stopped and Ginny stopped with him. "Doors open everywhere now that I'm finishing schooling, and what am I going to do with this life?"

Ginny touched a mitten hand to Harry's cheek. "How many times must we have this conversation? Your future is your own. Your destiny is your own. I'll say it again and again until you get it through your thick skull!" Ginny wrapped her arms around his neck.

"It's the scar, it's a block against self confidence and hope for the future," he said as he hugged her back. "I will always have it and it's a part of who I am." For the first time, he looked down over Ginny's shoulder.

"Foot Prints," Harry whispered to no one in particular.

"Probably our own," Ginny said turning slightly and letting one arm fall. She also looked down, spotting them in the snow.

"Ours should be only to here, leading away from the castle." He glanced back at the castle above them and then forward, unable to see past these trees and hillside.

"Let's follow them, at least we can surmise that there is a safe path down to the lake." Ginny suggested.

"Can't see if any one is down there, trees are blocking it." He felt a cold wind rush his exposed skin and in a flutter he continued, "We'll use the tracks to go down to the lake as far as they can take us." Rolling his shoulders, Ginny's arm slipped off his shoulder.

"Sudden chill?" Ginny asked.

"Yeah, I wasn't cold, then suddenly it penetrated my very bones." His green eyes met Ginny's. "Let's continue our walk down." He reached out and arm and the red head took it and continued their walk.

_**------------------------**_

_**Part 4: **_**Heir to the Snake**

"I could have inherited that power and have been the Dark Lord?" Draco finally said when words returned to him. Looking directly into the eyes of Slytherin, he saw someone more akin to himself than what the Chocolate Frogs showed. After a second, Draco felt himself laughing. "You don't look anything like I pictured you."

"That's the funny thing about a thousand year's passing, young dragon," the ancient said, "that image of me is a modern day creation. DO you think people would have been fearful of me if I looked so young and gorgeous to them?" He paused for a second and sighed. "But I got old and they created an image from the old me to be fearful of."

Finally releasing the ancients' arm, Draco shook his head. "No, I suppose not." Looking from his two ancestors back to the manor in the distance, the thought about being the Dark Lord surfaced again quickly in his head.

From the thoughtful look on Draco's face, the other two guessed what he was thinking about. It was Slytherin that finally spoke, "It would have been your decision to make, Draco Malfoy."

"You could say that whatever was in your heart and head would have shaped your future as a great wizard or as a dark lord" Corbin continued.

"But doesn't that apply to anyone?" Draco dropped his eyes and raised his hand to push back some loose hairs. "Power does not make one great," he found himself quoting another famous wizard, "it's how you use that power that makes one great. I have no doubt in my ability to do magic and I know my own strengths." He brought his eyes back up to meet Slytherin's, "Since my start at Hogwarts, my attitude toward my father has shifted. I like to think that I've grown from that first year who cried to daddy over anything that went wrong, into an adult capable of making my own choice and following my own path."

The two elders shared a similar private smile. Corbin took a step closer to Draco. "Lucius Malfoy was raised more by Tom Riddle than by my son. He ignored his family and was mesmerized by Tom Riddle's words. Riddle was angry at the world, angry at the hand he had been dealt; this power he was born with just corrupted him more. Lucius found himself wanting the approval of Riddle than of my son."

"If you had that choice and the power, Draco Malfoy, would you have been a dark lord?" the most ancient and noble Slytherin said.

Draco remembered his father never being there when he grew up. He remembered clamoring for his attention. "Wouldn't my childhood have been different if Tom Riddle had never existed? My father would have been there for me and I would have had that loving family" he found himself grimacing slightly as red hair popped into his mind, but shook it off just as quickly.

He went silent again as thoughts turned in his head. After a moment, he mumbled, "Would I go dark?" He then focused again on his two ancestors. Slytherin's hair matched his own blond, but the nose was sharper, and the eyes were the same cool gray. The ancient had his hands now clasped behind his back and those eyes focused on Draco with no judgment in them, just plain curiosity.

Corbin's hair was also long, and Draco now noted that the raven hair was in a braid down his back. His face clean shaven, but the eyes were green that sparkled with gold. A small freckle was prevalent under Corbin's nose and Draco noted that his pale arms were dotted with brown freckles.

Averting his eyes, Draco finally spoke: "As I am now, I would not." He sat down right where he stood and his two ancestors sat down on rocks that had magically appeared. "While the lure of such power draws me in, I think of all the pain and suffering that bastard has caused. With my father not being seduced by the dark bastard, I would have had a very different childhood. No nights of crying in bed. No bruises on my fingers when I did something wrong." He stopped again and looked over at the manor in the distance. Longing filled his eyes as he thought of growing up with a grandfather and all the fun grandparents are. Though questions about his family past looped through his head, he banished them with a shake of his head.

"I wouldn't want any kid to grow up without a father, or parents to love them. Mine weren't the best and my father fully expected me to follow in his footsteps." His voice lowered, "Part of me is glad he is in that coma, and part of me is angry that he will not be a part of my life."

"What would you have done with the power, young dragon?" His great grandfather asked him.

"We know of Tom Riddle's ascent into power," the ancient started. "His influence over people and the ability to control them was his number one asset. I could tell you of how many people joined him of their own free will. That nonsense about using the Imperius Charm on people to control them was merely their defense against court. Those that renounced the old ways by claiming Imperius Charm were dealt with harshly when he returned to power," Slytherin finished.

"I don't know if I am the mentor type, but fame and glory sounds nice." Draco found himself smiling a little.

"Careful, the desire for fame could lead you astray," Corbin said.

"Power has many outlets," the elder blond started. "There are many pathways between black and white, good and evil. Sometimes they are not so clear."

"It all returns to personal choice then," Draco said.

"A great philosopher once said that even our inactions cause a great reaction to the world around us," Corbin said.

Draco gave him a look.

"Malfoy's should be educated in all arts, including philosophy and the literature classics," Corbin defended his answer. "I even trained my children in muggle literature like the learnings of Shakespeare and Dickens. The matters of the heart and class struggle are universal, young dragon."

Draco found himself scoffing.

"You would not scoff if you read these works," Corbin said.

"Even to my students a thousand years ago I preached of understanding the Muggles. My reasoning may not have been for perfect harmony as Godric may have wanted, but as my later students would interpret it, they cannot deny the need for knowing the enemy. In matters of the heart and mind, they are our equals." Slytherin found himself rising to his feet with his words. Turning his back on Draco, he muttered softly, "You have only just begun to familiarize yourself with the matters of the heart."

Draco did not hear these last words. He was amazed that Salazar Slytherin himself would speak so highly of that which he had been taught were lesser than him.

"Muggles might surprise you," Corbin muttered.

"People in general might surprise you," a new voice said from his position kneeling by the lake, looking at his own reflection.

Draco noted the strange carvings on the back of the new arrival. While they could be described as tattoos, they were more like permanent etchings on his skin that could never heal.

After a moment, the stranger turned around and Draco found himself looking onto a handsome male with an aristocratic face framed by black wind blown shoulder length hair. His gray eyes matched a depth of his own. No cloth covered his chest either, and Draco noted more carvings on his chest, including what he recognized as protection runes. He simply wore a pair of Muggle jeans.

"Why do you keep those markings? This is heaven and you could choose your body to be from whatever stage of life you wanted." A note in Corbin's voice sounded chastising.

"These marks remind me of what I had sworn to protect and what I had loved." The stranger ran his fingers over a rune for love prominently displayed across his chest. He looked back into the eyes of Draco Malfoy.

Gray met gray again as the stranger stood and moved a step closer to Draco. As he did, Draco felt himself doing a mental backup. The words of his ancestors had reminded him of something he had almost forgotten.

"Am I really dead?" Draco found the voice to speak the words with.

The stranger stepped up to Draco and reached up a hand to touch the cheek of the young heir. Draco felt the contact on his cheek and he felt cold.

"You are about to be brought back," the stranger said with a nod towards the ancestors.

And with that, Draco Malfoy felt his body go ice cold. He could feel it penetrating his soul as it moved up his body. He tried to move away from the stranger, but he had grabbed the wrist of the young dragon with his other hand and still cupped Draco's face.

When the cold reached his chest he realized he couldn't breathe and suddenly found himself gasping for air. Still the stranger held on.

After a moment, the cold pressure covered his face. It filled his mouth and nose. As it reached his eyes, Draco cast a glance over at his two ancestors who merely watched. He blacked out.

-------------------------

**_Part 5_ The Hero complex**

Harry Potter felt a shiver rip through his body, as if an icy hand had placed itself upon his bare chest. Inhaling a deep breath, Harry stopped in his tracks, causing Ginny to walk past him. Placing a gloved hand over his heart—though the clothes—the boy who lived focused on the rise and fall of his chest to remind him he is alive.

"What's wrong?" Ginny asked, closing the gap that had come between them. "Did someone walk over your grave?"

A laugh escaped Harry's lips and immediately he felt warm. "Rather odd, Mrs Weasley, to hear a Muggle colloquialism from your lips." He reached out with his hand that was over his heart and grabbed her gloved hand.

"Remember, I did date Dean Thomas for a few months," she said, leaning into him while loosening her muffler from her face. "He taught mt about football and his crazy obsession with the players who stay on the ground." She gave a shrug, "What fun is that?"

"His part of the Gryffindor room is littered with non moving pictures of the players. I think I was the only one not creeped out by it, even Seamus, who is a half blood, says he lived more in the magical world than the Muggle and was perplexed by it." The rest of the boys were from wizard families. "But then again," Harry continued, "entering the wizard world did not weird me out."

"It is easier adjusting into rather than adjusting out," Ginny said in memory of spending time growing up helping her mother clean the nonmagical way.

Harry nodded and threaded his arm through hers. Feeling safer and once again reassured by her presence, rather like a security blanket, he started to step onward and felt Ginny move at his side. Around the next bend they should be at the edge of the lake.

Something wasn't right to Harry. The world was eerily silent around them. He moved a little swifter, wanting to brush off this reoccurring feeling.

Just as Ginny asked what the rush was, they came upon the lake.

The first thing Harry noticed was a pile of snow in the distance, which was highly odd.

At the same moment, Ginny looked down at the still existent footprints leading down to the lake. She brought her vision up in a sweeping glance and commented "There's no one here."

Bringing his vision back over the ice, Harry Potter saw something out of place: a hole in the ice, rather distant, more than three hundred meters away. The world was still silent around them; it had turned into an endless gray abyss. He pulled his snow cap off his head and listened.

The motion caught Ginny's eye. She followed his line of vision: a hole in the ice.

"I've got to go check," Harry said suddenly, becoming breathless. The stillness had set him off nerve. "We both expected to find someone down here and," he gestured wildly, "there's a hole in the ice."

"What would someone be doing out there?" Ginny asked the sane question. "Maybe someone just shot a hole in the ice with a stray spell?"

"I don't know, Ginny," he turned to look at her, "but I got to check to see no one's in the water." Pulling out his wand, he thought on a course of action.

"Shouldn't we have heard a cry of help then?" Ginny offered. "They would have tried to escape." But she knew Harry had not heard, she knew the look on his face. His mind was made up. Giving a sigh, she pulled out her wand and transfigured her muffler into a rope.

The Gryffindor did not even notice, he was forming action in his head. Only when he felt her tying a rope around his waist did he look at her again.

"Just in case," she simply said while leaving to tie off the end of the rope to their favorite tree.

Harry nodded, a quick plan of action had formed. He cast a simple levitation spell on himself, for he felt better not to touch the ice since it was thin and could crack under his weight. Levitating one's self was a little more tricky than levitating other things, but he quickly masted it.

With a side glance at Ginny, he set forth over the ice. Regulating his breathing to help keep himself calm, he glided over the ice. From above the ice, he could see little scratches on the ice; his mind supplied him with the correct term: ice skating. He had seen it only on the telly years ago and wondered which of the students ice skated. Realizing that someone could be trapped under the ice, or even dead, Harry Potter wondered which Muggle born had his or her life in his hands now. The thought gave him new resolve to double check to make sure no one was there. If the wizard was clever enough, he prayed, he or she could have done a spell, but Harry shuddered to think of that circumstance.

His vision focused on only the hole in the ice, for some break in the water. His ears strained to listen to any unusual noises.

When in actuality it took less than a minute to reach the hole, time stretched in his head. He'd heard nothing, saw no movement in the water, and by the time he reached the hole in the ice, the water was peaceful and still. Small broken pieces of ice floated within the big hole. Again Harry found his resolve doubled as he stared into pitch black water.

While he was simply tempted to stick his hand in and be done with it, it didn't seem logical if someone was unconscious. At second thought, blasting it open a little more and doing a basic summoning spell for a non discript human body. He wasn't sure that it would find anything, but then he would be relieved.

The Boy Who Lived cast his spell with a small movement of his wand and the ice around the hole broke into smaller pieces. A summoning spell left his lips in barely a whisper, partially afraid of what he would find. His heart pounded in his chest and echoed endlessly in his ears for what again seemed an infinity. If someone was down there, they could be dead.

At first sign of ripple in the water, Harry didn't know whether to be relieved or saddened at finding something breaking the stillness. A black gloved hand broke the water rising out of the water, its' palm spread open as if he had pushed against the ice and lost. Slowly, the inner wrist rose from the icy depths dripping with water as if it was dripping blood.

His heart seemed to stop in his chest when from the bank, he heard a shriek from Ginny as she witnessed this icy being rising from the darkened water.

Finally the shoulder appeared and Harry knew that next would be the head. While he still hoped that some magic had been cast by this unfortunate soul to keep itself alive, the hope was dwindling. Reaching out to the gloved hand, Harry gave a physical tug on the body.

With that tug, a blond head rolled lifelessly on its shoulder. Water crawled down each inch of skin as if it was alive. His face had an icy blue hue to it and the lips were an unhealthy shade of blue.

A wordless scream filled every essence of Harry Potters being. Finally, his voice found his throat and he shouted the name of the frozen boy.

"Draco." He shouted his name once at the boy and got no response.

Second time that Harry shouted it, he punctuated it with a light tap on the cheek.

For what was once bravery had now turned into fear as he saw his blond angel unresponsive. Harry's heart pounded again as he gave a tug and got an armful of wet frozen Draco Malfoy. The Slytherin was the last person at Hogwarts he had expected to be doing such a Muggle thing.

With his bounty light as a feather, Harry pulled the lifeless body close to his own not caring if he got wet. He felt a tug as he felt himself being pulled back to the shore, careful not to drop his precious cargo. The blond's arm was still extended oddly enough and Harry cradled his body in the arms.

Bad thoughts filled Harry's head. Draco couldn't be breathing, as his body was more of a rag doll than a living body. Harry's own breath hitched again, wishing that his own warm breath could warm Draco Malfoy. The Gryffindor's feet were over solid ground when Harry leaned down and pressed a kiss onto his brow and then to his icy blueish lips.

As if by magic, the blond angel's body gave the most slightest of jerks. Instantaneously, his lips returned to a normal color. Harry canceled the levitation spell and his feet dropped to the ground. Ginny came into his line of view and she held her once again muffler in her hand.

"Is he dead?" She asked.

"I'm not sure," he could only hope that the frozen boy was under a spell.

"Go and alert Madame Pomfrey. I will bring him to her," he said as he wanted to feel hope again to verbal spare with the boy in his arms again.

She gave a nod and took off at a run back up toward the castle.

Harry felt the body give a shudder. He wondered what type of spell Draco had used to keep himself alive, since he had been undeniably under that ice for longer than five minutes, and wondered what type of action to take. Quickly, Harry did a basic cancelation spell, just in case he had done magic to save himself.

Harry felt his heart sink again as the spell had no effect on the boy. Luckily enough, Harry had seen a documentary on hypothermia while doing dishes at his relatives before.

Try to get him breathing first, and then worry about warming him up.

First, Harry cast a drying spell on their clothes and puled off his gloves. He slipped off the blond's coat and laid him down on it. Leaning over him, he parted the Slytherin's lips, listened for breaths, and watched for the chest rising. He heard no breath, nor saw the chest rise. This time, Harry breathed twice into the cold body. He watched the chest rise and fall after each breath.

Draco gave a sudden mouthful of water into Harry's mere inches away face. Wiping his own face with his sleeve, he watched Draco start to breath on his own, ever so slightly. A small part of Harry though that it shouldn't have been that easy, but the big booming voice in Harry's head shouted that "He's ALIVE!"

Draco's seemingly frozen in the air arm suddenly went limp at his side. His gray eyes had not opened, but Harry knew he was breathing.

"Cold," the semiconscious wizard whispered and his head fell to the side.

Harry grasped Draco's hand and brushed some hair off of his forehead. The skin still felt cold. He had to get the other man warm.

After listening to the blond's teeth chatter for a moment, he had an idea. They needed protection from the cold, second, start bringing his temperature back up, and third, to get moving.

He conjured up a bed with blankets and then a bubble of warmth around them. He lifted Draco onto the bed. With a hurry Harry had hardly known before, he started pulling off the clothes of the other boy. While he was leaning over pulling off the final shirt, Harry heard him whisper, "Black."

Above them in Harry's line of vision, a dark colored bird cawed. Perched among snow covered branches, the crow seemed highly out of place. Harry turned his head slightly to see if Draco had opened his eyes or somehow had known the black bird was there.

Climbing on to the bed, he kicked his own shoes off, took off his jacket, and started pulling off his own shirts until his snake pendant was bare on his chest. It stood out on his own pale skin, the green emerald eyes seemed dull in the whitened day light. Leaning back, Harry undid Draco's pants and pulled only to encounter the ice skates them selves still attached to his feet. They held no straps, ties, or buttons, so Harry put an enlarging spell on them to make them slip off his fee. It worked. Ripping down his own pants, Harry threw them off to the side. Both of them were naked, as Harry felt that the warmth generated down there would help. He then enchanted the bed to take them to Madame Pomfrey.

Harry moved so he was laying on top of the other boy. He pulled the cover up and arranged Draco's arms up above his head to let heat escape, but also made the blanket so the lower parts of his legs could help let heat escape. Wanting as much skin contact as possible, Harry pressed his chest onto Draco's as if the strength of his heart beat could make Draco's stronger. Harry's legs were on the outside of the blond's pressing them together. He moved to his elbows to look directly into Draco's face. His teeth had stopped chattering, and Harry could see his eyes beneath the lids moving, as if he were dreaming. "Cousin," the word filtered out of Draco's lips as the chest attached started breathing a little more normal.

His skin was not fully a normal color.

With the idea of warming him up, Harry started rubbing his body up and down across the other boy. After about three movements, he realized he had become aroused. Harry thought that is would be more embarrassing to have the teachers find him like this than to have Draco wake up and find him like this, Harry tried to will his arousal down.

Holding the other boy as close as possible, Harry heard a bird caw above them. What could only be described as the same bird sat on a perch above them as the bed took them by it. Why would a crow be following them?

Feeling a sudden nerve, Harry looked down at the Slytherin. He lowered his forehead to touch Draco's and let his nose rest against the other's. Harry kept his eyes directly over Draco's as he longed to look into those gray eyes from the same short distance.

"Potter," he heard Draco whisper. Having Malfoy day his name like that reinforced Harry's hard on. Harry wondered why he would say his name, but that he must be dreaming. Draco's body responded to it as blood rushed to that area. Harry felt the urge, the need, to press his lower regions down and grind that boy into the mattress. Harry felt his breathing hitch as nothing had ever felt so good as having someone else pressing back into him. After a moment, he wanted to steal a kiss from the aroused boy below him. Harry pressed his lips down upon Draco's and used his tongue to part those lips to lick his tongue.

At that moment, the semi conscious boy's eyes jerked open to wide.

Harry jumped and just as he was inches away, Draco let out a scream.

"What is the meaning of this?!?!" A voice said, full of anger.

Harry jerked his head away from Draco's only to find Snape, Pomfrey, and Ginny standing right in front of him, beyond them, the castle. He had made it to the castle.

Talk about an erection killer, Harry turned Gryffindor scarlet under their stare.

­--------------

_**The end of Chapter 2**_

Well, I hope you liked it. This part 5 was incredibly hard for me to write as I had problems mixing magic with the right steps for rescuing someone from the ice. Thankfully, this is a fanfiction and I can do it however I want to.

Once again, expect the first part of the next chapter to be out within the next week. I apologize to those that have story alerted this and are still waiting for the new chapter. But I kind of thought that this would be a nice way to keep getting readers to my story by bringing it to the top of recent fics each time I add or change something drastic.

Hope no one is disappointed where this is heading. Kudos to anyone who remembers the movie The Crow, this situation will be loosely based around that one. No, Draco is not going to go around killing all the enemies or avenging anybody, though I think makeuped clown scary trenchcoated Draco would be an awesome thing. For all intents and purposes, Voldie is pretty much dead for now. He will play a big role later, MUCH later.

Just a few notes left... Yes, it is possible that Potter could have been related to Malfoy, as nearly all purebloods are related somewhere along the line. Who here can trace their ancestry back two centuries?

With the banter towards Finningan and Goldstein, I wanted to say that I just wanted to have an established couple for once.

Thanks for reviewing: BonnNuit, Natwest, and darkshadowarchfiend for putting a review down on the huge put together Ch 2.

Thanks for the review to those who gave a review to when it was stand alones, the most recent chapter: olupotter18, BonnNuit, randomness, bliss of sleep, and Twiztedfate.

**Teaser for next chapter:**

His feet touched the snow and he wondered why he didn't pass through it. He made the motion of taking a breath and immediately missed the icy feel of the cold on his lungs.


	3. The Will To Live

_Broken Ice_

_by Iris Wood_

Chapter 3 _**The Will to Live**_

Well, this is a complete Chapter 3.

Warnings: HP/DM, kind of, he's still unconscious. Sirius/James kiss in a flashback. (In my world, sex is a lot freer, and everyone is gay;) And voyeurism, but that is all I can say now.

Anything non canon is my creation, including Aunt Taryn and the spy.

_--------------_

Part 1** _A Ghost of a Chance_**

Bare feet touched the snow, and the man attached wondered why they didn't pass through it. He made the motion of taking a breath and immediately missed the icy feel of the cold in his lungs. Clad only in the jeans still, he felt he should be cold in the snowy backdrop and wished he had his old motorcycle jacket on. It appeared around his shoulders and with a simple movement, he slipped his hair out over the collar.

His idea had worked. His relation to the Malfoys had finally come to good use. When the Malfoy child had been in the land of the dead, it was a rule that only his ancestors could greet him. He was knowledgeable of the feelings the young Malfoy and Harry Potter held for each other--as the ancestors had put it, the dead are all seeing, all knowing. A deal had been struck between himself, Corbin Malfoy, and the higher powers: he would be given this chance only if he tries to lift the curse upon the family that Lucius Malfoy had placed upon it.

Turning, he found what he knew to be there: a semi frozen Draco Malfoy being carried back to the shoreline by Harry Potter, as being tugged in by Ginny Weasley. He knew Harry to be the hero type as others had put it before. Harry would help him, especially knowing his feelings for the young Malfoy despite the past they had shared during their younger years at Hogwarts.

He heard the franticness of Harry's voice when he told Ginny Weasley to go alert Pomfrey. He had always favored the Weasley girl and was thankful for how she helped Harry in his time of need this past year.

"I never blamed you," his voice sounded so alien even to his own ears. Harry Potter could not hear him, but he found himself saying it as much for his own sake as he wished he could for Harry's. "The Dark Lord tricked you. You are the last thing I have of my beloved James; I let myself think that I could give you the family that was denied both of us."

Sirius Black could only watch as Harry fought to keep himself calm. He could only watch as Harry slipped off Malfoy's coat and then laid him down onto it. He watched as Harry sank to his knees next to the blond and touching the head back and trying to breath life into his body. Malfoy's chest gave a rise and on the second breath, he gave a spurt of water up into Harry's face.

Sirius found himself giving a laugh. The look on Harry's face was priceless. Sirius had seen that wet look on James' face many a time before. It had been after Lily Evans had done a rather spectacular trick with a Muggle water balloon at James. He refused to let the memory surface.

"How I loved your parents," Sirius found the words leaving his lips though they had no audience. He felt sorrow for his loss, though as Moaning Myrtle had proved, ghosts still had feelings. When he looked at his godson, he saw his best friend, a man he would have died for, and a man he had loved. Sirius dug his hands into his pockets, he had better not think of those days long ago.

He looked over to see Harry brushing the wet hairs off the pale forehead, the look upon his face similar to one he had seen on James' face many times before. The simple brush conveyed an act of affection that tugged at his heart. Such a small thing made him long for times when they were more carefree.

Another memory popped up and this time he welcomed it.

_Twenty plus years ago, he had been underneath the very same tree with James on a rare sunny spring afternoon. Remus was off putting a finishing touch on a foot of parchment for potions, and the rat was off having a snack down in the kitchen. Only the two of them enjoyed the sunshine by the lake._

_James had his snitch out, releasing it and then catching it. After a moment, he dropped to a sitting position below the tree. He let the snitch go, and suddenly turned to pull Sirius down into a laying position next to him, only to catch the snitch a moment later. Putting the snitch back into his pocket, James propped himself up on an elbow to study Sirius's profile. _

_Just when Sirius was about to say something, James smacked his fingers lightly over Sirius's forehead, brushing the hair away from his eyes. Sirius waited for the punchline, and he was not disappointed._

"_Padfoot looks like he has fleas, maybe he needs a bath."_

_Sirius gave a laugh and then retorted, "Do you want to bathe him?" The words were out of his mouth before he had realized what he had said. _

_James arched an eyebrow. "It is a nice day out here, maybe he could get a bath right here." A smirk streaked across his face as he magicked the still very cold lake water onto Sirius's head. _

_The look on Sirius's face remains priceless: his mouth agape, his eyes surprise, and his hair wetly falling across his face. He did the first thing that came to his mind-retaliation-and did a similar spell to splash James with the freezing cold water. In that split second of surprise, Sirius moved and pushed James' other shoulder to the ground and maneuvered his hands to pin James down._

"_Now you look like a wet dog as much as I do, Prongs," he said with a grin stretched across his face. But it was James who did it; he pushed up and managed to brush his lips against Sirius's._

"_How about a bath?" James' voice was soft and held only a hint of promise._

_Sirius gave a nod and tentatively closed the difference between them for a better kiss. He let the hands slip from his grasp. One hand touched the wet skin of his neck, and the other hand reached up to brush the hair out of Sirius's face once again._

End flashback.

Sirius smiled only to himself. They were fourteen at the time in a world much more carefree. It was his first kiss and the start of a new level of friendship. Sirius tried to shake his head of the thoughts.

"Black."

Turning his head wildly for who said his name, Sirius spotted no other person. His gaze refocused to a Harry Potter undressing the Malfoy boy on this bed he had conjured up. Harry stopped his action of pulling off one of the boy's shirts and was staring at the infamous lakeside tree. Sirius followed his gaze only to find a single black crow perched among the bare tree limbs.

"Black," he realized it was the crow that had said his family name. He walked over to the crow.

While he was tempted to say something such as 'how do you know my name' or 'how can it talk,' Sirius settled on a simple "Yes."

"I am known as Charon. I am your connection to the other world. Your time here is limited, soon I will return your soul to the dead." The crow's mouth did not move, but the words came from it.

"A deal had been struck, I thought, between the ancestors, myself, and the higher powers. We each have our own agenda, but thought I would be able to communicate with the young Malfoy here."

"So you shall. He will be the only one that can see you," the crow spoke.

"Will I be able to return here?" Sirius worried that he had been given a bad deal, worried that Charon would return him without his even being able to talk to Draco.

"Yes, but as long as you are on this plane, I will be nearby. It is my decision as to when you will come back to the dead," Charon ruffled his feathers. Stretching his great wings, he started to preen himself indicating the end of the conversation.

His time was limited, but he knew he would have to wait till the young Malfoy was awake. Turing back around, he found that the bed was gone. Harry must have enchanted it to take them back to the castle. Darting back to where the bed had been, he found the awkward prints of the four post bed walking.

His feet ghosted along the snow in the direction of the castle. Within moments, he caught up with the bed. A sight most unusual beheld him when he reached the bed. The sight of a naked Harry Potter perched atop the young Malfoy! Sirius's mind screamed WHAT THE HELL?!?! before rationality kicked in and he realized that he was trying to warm him up. What a perk! Was his next thought.

Sirius willed himself to 'sit' with his legs crossed on the bed, away from its' occupants. Draco looked to be regaining color and his teeth had stopped chattering. The ghost found himself unable to take his eyes off of his godson; he reminded him so of James. Their legs and upper chest were exposed and a blanket covered their trunks.

"You don't know how close I came to being your father," he whispered and tried to quickly squelched any thoughts attached to him or Lily from surfacing.

Harry had laid himself on top of the Malfoy and Sirius could tell that Harry was getting turned on by this. He found himself unable to look away as he watched Harry lower himself onto Draco and balance himself on his elbows above the other boy. Harry's head turned up and away from Draco only to, as Sirius saw, gaze upon Charon up in a tree. The crow said nothing, but made its' presence known with a loud caw.

When Harry returned his attention to Draco's face, something had changed in Harry's face. Sirius watched his profile and moved himself into a laying on his side position. The look on Harry's face had turned to longing. The raven colored hair fell so familiar around the Potter face, yet so differently as James' hair was a longer length at 17.

Again, Sirius wanted to tell his godson so badly that it wasn't his fault that he died. He wanted to tell him that there was hope still. The ghost watched as Harry lowered his forehead to touch the one below him. Sirius reached out his hand to touch the raven haired boy's face, but the bed gave a bump and his hand fell into Draco. Almost instantaneously, Draco very horsely said "Potter."

Sirius jerked his hand away and wondered if he had caused the boy to say his name cause he had been thinking so heavily about him. That thought was quickly lost as he watched Harry press himself into Draco and Harry wrap his lower body tighter around the blond. The Gryffindor's breathing changed.

He could only watch as Harry closed the distance between their mouths. He could only watch as Harry peaked his tongue out to slide it between the Slytherin's lips.

Draco at that moment jerked his eyes open, unfocused and unaware of the man above him. Harry jerked upward as he watched Draco arch himself up in a wordless scream.

"What is the meaning of this?" Sirius had not noticed that the bed had stopped and looking down at the end of the bed stood Snivellus, the Weasley girl, and Madam Pomfrey, all at the opening of the bridge walkway to the castle. Sirius glanced back at Harry to see that the boy had turned a full body scarlet. Below him, the Malfoy boy was unable to move, his eyes still unfocused.

Sirius watched as Harry closed his eyes and inhaled a deep breath, before speaking, "It was a logical way to bring up his body temperature." He opened his eyes and grasped the thermal long sleeve that was piled next to Sirius, and pulled it on after rolling sideways off of Draco and pulling the cover up over him.

"By molesting him" Snape bit out.

Madam Pomfrey moved to the side of the bed and checked over Draco. "I think Mr. Potter should be commended for his act of bravery, and his attempt to keep him alive."

"Appropriate warming spells did not come to mind," Harry slowly said. "The only thing that did was a Muggle documentary that I had seen at my relatives before," his voice was stronger by the time he finished speaking. He grabbed his pants and pulled them on below the blanket.

Sirius felt he should be commended too. With his own private smirk, he looked fully over at Snivellus, who had gone red int the cheeks and could only grit his teeth and look upon them wide eyed. The Weasley girl was silent next to them, the slightest smile on her face, as if she knew something else no one else did.

"Let's get him to the hospital wing," Pomfrey said. Just as Harry popped off, she reduced the size of the bed to fit through the doors. Sirius stood too next to Harry.

"Thank you, Mrs Weasley, for your alert, you are dismissed." Snape addressed Ginny. "You, Mr Potter," he said, turning to Harry, "may follow to the hospital wing to collect your things."

Harry gave a nod and moved to follow them into the castle.

Sirius the ghost walked over to Snivellus and stood inches away from him. "Thank you for protecting Harry," he said, though he knew that Snape could not hear. In the final battle in which Albus Dumbledore lost his life, and the Dark Lord was vanquished, Severus Snape had protected Harry Potter, and removed the unconscious boy from the fight. Snape turned and walked into the castle, intending on sending for Draco's aunt.

"Black," the crow spoke to him. "Your time here is limited."

Sirius gave a nod toward the crow and walked into the castle. Hogwarts had changed so little since he was a boy here, only the teachers have. Remembering that he was a ghost, Sirius decided to take the shortest path to the Hospital wing: through two empty classrooms.

When he reached the hospital wing, he found that Draco had been transferred to a hospital bed. Harry sat perched on a empty bed next to the Slytherin and was silently separating the clothes into piles next to him.

Sirius moved and stood next to Draco, between Harry and the bed. Draco's eyes were closed, as if he were asleep, a bottle of potion next to him on the table. He looked more alive now than before.

"I need your help, Draco," Sirius said, kneeling next to the bed. Draco opened his eyes to look at him.

"Sirius Black," the words were just audible to Harry on the next bed, and he leaned a little closer in.

"I want you to help bring me back."

Part 2 _ Complications_

Harry clutched his necklace tightly in his hand. He could only sit and watch Draco sleep now. Pomfrey had allowed him to collect his things and he was dragging his feet about leaving. The school nurse had applied a lotion to the Slytherin's skin to help blood flow to all parts of the body and had given him something to help him relax. (AN: yes, I don't know if making him relax after a near drowning would be the best solution, but I'm just making this up as I go...) Draco was still recovering and she planned to do a full examination in about an hour after she brewed a special potion to help him.

Harry had informed her that Malfoy did speak a little while he was only half conscious, but Madam Pomfrey was yet to get a response from the boy. Relaxing was the current solution and he would talk and move when he was ready.

While sitting and watching the sleeping Slytherin, Harry thought he looked so innocent and childlike. Who had known that things would turn out like this when he woke up this morning? It was two days before Xmas and he had rescued Draco, who had been doing a distinctly Muggle thing, seen him naked, pressed himself onto him to help save him, and stolen a kiss.

Harry sat down on the vacant bed to the right of the occupied one. Draco was unresponsive to voices now, but the Gryffindor could swear he had heard him say, 'Black,' 'Cousin,' and 'Potter.' Had he been dreaming? The way Malfoy said his name had caused a fire to burn in Harry, as if he knew he was there. Harry knew that the Malfoys were related to the Blacks according to the Black Family tree. Draco's mother was a cousin to Sirius: one of three sisters. Rolling his eyes, Harry wondered which family had the stronger pureblood mania.

Looking down at the necklace in his hand, he pressed the S into his palm. He had bought this necklace with a secret hope of one day giving it to the Slytherin, but that was a hope that said Slytherin would one day be in his life. The pendant even looked like a snake, its' eyes were tiny emeralds and if one looked hard enough, you could make out the indentation of scales curving down the back of the S. Harry had slipped it also off when he undressed to warm the Slytherin. It also represented the Slytherin half inside of him, for now more than ever, he had recently wondered how things would have been different had he been in Slytherin rather than a Gryffindor.

But he shook his head away from any such line of thoughts, and it was a 'caw' that brought him back into the hospital room. Up on the window sill sat a black crow, almost impossibly the same crow that he had spotted twice before. Feeling suspicious, Harry thought to himself that he should ask Hermione about crows after the holiday.

Bringing his gaze back down, he looked back at the only occupied bed in the wing. Draco's eyes were barely open, looking in his direction, but not really looking at him. Harry resisted the urge to jump up and grab the blond's hand. Instead, Harry edged himself to the edge of the bed and leaned forward to watch the Slytherin for movement.

"Sirius Black." The words were barely audible to Harry, but once again piqued his interest.

Draco's eyes seemed to follow something Harry did not see, for he turned his head a little to look down at the end of the bed.

"Murderer," the boy breathed, before settling his half lidded eyes back toward Harry. The Gryffindor gripped the pendant tighter in his hand; how he wished he could go over and shake the other boy and correct him.

"Pettigrew," the name scratched lowly from the Slytherin's mouth.

Harry's breath caught in his throat, it was as if Malfoy had read his mind. Standing up, Harry gave into the urge to reach out to the other boy. Just when his eyes were focus solely on Draco, and his right hand hovered above Draco's, the crow gave a loud CAW that seemed to echo in Harry's ears. Looking up, he could see the crow flying out the window, though he was sure that there was a magical barrier there and no way in or out for a simple crow to just fly though.

Feeling more perplexed, Harry returned his attention down to the blond in the bed. "Draco," the name left his lips just as he grasped the hand of the Slytherin. Within seconds Draco's features changed and he looked to be in pain, and looked to be more aware than before. Draco started thrashing his hand as if trying to rid Harry's hand.

"Hurts," Draco said, his face contorting in pain. Harry immediately let go and backed away. The blond's hand visually trembled.

"Sorry" was the first thing out of Harry's lips. While he felt slightly worried and a bit upset over Draco's reaction, he didn't feel good about this new development. When Draco didn't say anything, Harry turned and said that he would return with Pomfrey. Slipping the necklace into his pocket, Harry exited into the nurse's office without looking back at Draco.

Harry found Pomfrey mixing a potion. "I touched Draco's hand and he said it hurt and it started trembling," he just blurted out.

"Oh dear," was all she said. Thankfully, her voice was not accusatory as Harry feared that it would've been. She froze the bottom of the cauldron as the potion required. "Did you wake him?" she asked as she went though the door back into the infirmary.

"He woke himself. I heard him mumbling to himself and when I tried to touch his hand, he said it hurts and it started trembling." Harry filled her in very fast and found himself worrying more as they entered the room again.

When they entered the room, Draco was more coherent, for he immediately made eye contact with Harry.

"I can't make a fist," was the first thing Draco said. With his left hand he cradled the right hand to his body.

"Do you remember hurting it?" She asked him.

"No" Harry said at the same time as Draco spoke. The blond gave him a look with the tiniest smirk attached.

"Hold out your hand, please," she asked. Draco held up his right hand and it trembled. She reached out to feel it and he immediately hissed in pain. Touching it at different spots with her hand first, she then bought her wand up his hand from finger tips to shoulder to head. She gave a slight shake of her head before speaking. "I can find no physical breaks, but there does seem to be some nerve damage." She stood back from her patient. Instead of elaborating, she asked, "Do you remember anything?"

"I drowned" was all the Slytherin said looking down away from them.

"And I brought you back," the words flew from Harry's lips before he could realize that he was saying them.

"Mr. Potter here and Mrs Weasley told of how they had found you under the ice," she said.

"Yeah," was all that Draco could muster.

"Sometimes there are complications when the oxygen doesn't reach the brain for a time period." Madam Pomfrey summoned another vial. "Start drinking this about every hour, it should help you get better." She poured it into a cup and handed it to him. "Drinking all at once is preferable." Malfoy took it with his left hand and gulped it. His face made a small grimace. "Still expecting pumkin juice, heh?"

As Madame Pomfrey walked to the door, Harry started to make his own exit. He shrunk his excess clothes and stuck them into his pocket. Giving a start, he remembered that he had not picked up Malfoy's wand, so it was probably at the bottom of the lake. He decided to go talk to Ginny and go retrieve it while there was still time before dinner.

"I didn't find your wand," Harry told Draco, closing the distance between himself and the bed. "Sorry," was all he could muster.

"Thanks, Harry" Draco said and leaned to grab his arm with his left hand. "For saving me, I mean."

Harry wiggled his arm, not to rid Draco's hand, but to be able to grasp it, like he had intended to do before Draco had freaked out. He had no intention of telling Draco about how he 'saved' him.

"Who taught you to ice skate?" The question had plagued his mind.

"My cousins," was all he said.

Harry's mouth fell open. For a Malfoy to be doing something so Muggle seemed unheard of.

"Surprised?" Draco said, causing Harry to close his mouth. "Apparently, we are not all evil," he cryptically said.

The doors to the hospital wing flew open with a sudden bang; Harry immediately dropped Draco's hand. A short woman with a short haircut and button nose rushed into the room. From the hair, Harry could tell she was a Malfoy. The clasped hands were not unnoticed by her. A step behind her, Snape strode in, immediately dismissing Potter.

"Leave, Potter."

Draco gave him a tiny smile only for him. Harry withdrew and started to walk away, only to come face to face with the short woman whose top of her head came up to Harry's eyes.

"The boy who still lives," she said, her own green eyes peering up into Harry's.

Harry felt his guard go up. But the next thing she said took him by surprise.

"You do have Lily's eyes," she said then glanced up at his scar. "I'm sorry that you couldn't have known her, she was a dear friend of mine through school." She clasped his hand into her smaller one and shook it lightly.

"My name is Taryn Saint Clair, Draco's aunt."

Again, Harry's mouth fell open. It was unexpected to say the least. Suddenly, he heard a laugh from Draco on the bed. The woman pushed past him now and placed a kiss upon Draco's forehead.

Harry felt that he should leave, but was glued to the spot as the truth of a Malfoy Evans friendship turned in his mind.

"Dismissed." Snape once again commanded.

Harry stepped away and made his exit. The thought of still retrieving Draco's wand seemed like a good idea, as it would give him an excuse to come see him again. With a look over his shoulder, he made eye contact with Draco before exiting the room.

Part 3 _ Family Values_

Draco remembered it all: his ancestors' words still floated around his mind. His relation to Slytherin still amazed him. Knowing that his family had a better side than what he had grown up with in his house was a comfort to him.

Sirius Black had followed him back from the dead and vanished with a crow's whim. Draco knew he was related to the Blacks and had thought them similar to his own infernal family. To his surprise, through his conversation with Black, Draco learned that Sirius was not the maniacal murderer that the history books and recent newspapers thought he was. Sirius blamed everything on the betrayal of one Peter Pettigrew, which, as Draco knew from newspapers from his third year, was one that Black was supposed to have killed.

Sirius asked things of him, but Draco was not sure of how he could help his dead cousin. He wanted to be brought back from the dead, and to Draco's knowledge, there is no way to return from the dead. Sirius, however, said he knew of a way. Second on the agenda is vengeance against the two people that as he said it, 'ruined' his life: Peter Pettigrew and Draco's aunt, Bellatrix Lestrange. Both had managed to stay uncaptured from the Ministry. Moments after Draco learning this, Sirius Black had been taken by the crow, and Black promised he would be back.

One thing Draco would never forget is the moment he shared with Harry Potter, despite what negative implications the actions had. He wasn't surprised that the man with the hero complex was his savior. With smiles and a touch was all Draco could do to repay him. Maybe, just maybe, Draco thought, there is hope for a future between them.

But he had been most disturbed when Potter had touched his right hand, for unbelievable pain shot up his arm and it trembled uncontrollably. Unable to grasp anything, he had taken to clutching it to his chest. Thankfully, Madame Pomfrey would be able to do something about this injury.

Potter had just been dismissed by Snape after being told that his mother was once his aunt's best friend.

"Severus told me about your nearly drowning. What were you thinking?" his aunt demanded.

"Just ice skating and simply made a mistake in judging the ice," Draco said with a shrug.

"Worried sick I was when Severus flooed me. I rushed right over. Another few minutes and he would have missed me." She put a hand to his forehead. "How are you feeling?"

Madame Pomfrey popped out of nowhere to answer that. "He is in good health, except for one problem." His aunt made a little wince, when the nurse said problem. "When blood does not reach the brain, it sometimes causes complications. Mr Malfoy is having trouble using his right hand, even to grasp something."

Draco felt himself trying to move his fingers and being unable to close his fist.

"I gave him something for the pain and will keep him on a regiment for helping him control his hand over time."

"Will it affect his magic?" Aunt Taryn asked.

"Possibly," she answered. "But he should be back in full control of his wand and magic by the NEWTS."

"Five months!" Draco found himself shouting.

"This is still a hospital, Draco," his aunt admonished him.

"It's too early to tell, but he may have to relearn control with his wand. I've seen it happen that the patient needed to be retaught his basic skills with his hands, even to the point of having to use the opposite hand to wave a wand." She uncorked a potion she had been clutching. "Mr. Malfoy will need to drink this twice a day for the next few days to help his nervous system. Here, you may take the first dose now."

The nurse tipped it up to Draco's lips to drink. "Only a mouthful each time, please."

Draco took a swig, and for once, it tasted like carrot juice.

"I'll be back in the office, if either of you would like to have another word together," she nodded to each in turn. "Nice to have meet you, Mrs. St Clair." She walked out.

Aunt Taryn shared a look with Severus, as if they both knew the damage had the potential to be very serious and permanent.

Draco warred with himself, he wanted some answers about his family history that he thought he knew.

"Thank you for your concern, Severus, but can I talk to my aunt alone for a bit?"

Snape nodded and turned to leave, sharing a look with his aunt again, as if signaling that the conversation is not yet over.

"Tell me about my grandfather and how did he die?" he asked.

A slightly glazed look came over her face as she repeated nearly word for word what his own father had once told him. Listening to her small magic forced lie, Draco found another reason to dislike his father. He wondered what type of spell or charm his father had used to convince his family of an honest, and not finger pointing death. He felt he would need to find out the truth about it, and wondered how he would he would find out. Draco asked about his grandmother and was fed the same lie.

Aunt Taryn leaned forward to push hair away from Draco's face, as if nothing magical had just occurred. He had to resist the urge to lean away from the touch, as he was still reeling over the lies.

"Why the sudden interest?" She asked as the spell fully lost its hold.

"Nothing much," Draco forced himself to keep his face neutral. "Almost dying makes me want to reconnect with my family." It wasn't a total lie, just a twisted truth. His near death experience had forced him to reexamine what he thought he knew about his family. "How are the boys doing?" he changed the subject.

"Asher and J.C. have been spending the holiday with Requiem's parents in the South of France." She let a smile grace her lips as she mentioned her husband. "As I said, if Severus had not flooed me at that exact moment, he would have missed me all together. I was doing final preparations to leave for the holiday."

"Thank you for your concern, Auntie, but I'll be all right," he said using his elbows to push himself up on the bed a little.

"I am glad to see you are able to do that, Draco. From what the Nurse was describing, this is a very serious development." His aunt said repositioning his pillow behind him.

Draco felt a snicker leave his lips at the word serious. "I have a feeling how serious it will be." This time, his lips only turned upward into a smile.

Taryn put her hands to her hips in a motherly fashion. "What ever do you find funny. You could have died."

Draco could not tell her that he had died, instead he looked down at his hands. They looked no different, as the right one had stopped trembling, but as much as he willed his fingers in his right hand to move, he found himself unable to curl his fingers or even twist his wrist. He had a feeling it might be a price for coming back. Thoughts of his cousin willed their way back into his head. At what cost was he wiling to help him? Did his ancestors know this was going to happen? Is this the price of bringing back one causality of this war? The cost of being able to do magic?

Aunt Taryn reached out to touch Draco's right hand, momentarily forgetting about the problem with the hand, her goal simply to bring him away from whatever thoughts troubled him. The moment she did, Draco winced at the pain and silently pulled the hand away.

"It is serious then," she said more to herself than to him, pulling her hands together in front of her.

"Will I be able to hold a wand again?" Draco found himself asking, looking directly into the eyes of his aunt.

"There are other options," she said, "both of which would require you becoming proficient in a new skill. Relearning spells with your left hand is one option." She reached out and grasped his left hand, pulling it up and away from his other hand and curled the fingers. Placing his left hand back down, she placed a hand on his head. "The other option is wand less magic, saying the spells in your head. It requires a complete mastery of the spell or charm before being able to do it by thinking it. Only a handful of people have a complete mastery of common spells and charms, it is difficult to learn." Her voice dropped as she finished the sentence. "Have faith and heart, little dragon, you have food blood and a strong will. You will get better."

Draco found himself arching an eyebrow, this was the first time he had ever heard her say anything positive about being a Malfoy. Maybe she did know something about their heritage. Or maybe she was showing a little of the pureblood mania her brother had been so adept at.

His aunt gave a smile and kissed his forehead. "Do you want me to stay for a little longer, here at Hogwarts? Or I can give you the address and you can contact me if you need to talk."

Draco squelched the urge to ask her a million questions about his family history. "You can leave, go spend Christmas with your family."

"You are my family too. As much as I am hesitant sometimes to admit it, I am first and formost a Malfoy." She ran a hand through her hair, as if showing it off to Draco. "Locks this beautiful come from good genes."

Draco gave a genuine smile and nodded his head.

"I shall go talk to Severus for a few before leaving." She drew out a quill and parchment from her pocket. "Here, let me give you the address of my husbands parents house before leaving." She wrote it down and then handed it to him. He took it with his left hand. "Read it back to me," and he did. He reached over and put it onto the nightstand.

The petite blond woman leaned over and carefully gave Draco a hug and patted his hair this time. "Get well young dragon," she said before turning and leaving the room.

Part 4 _Do tell_

Harry Potter stood out front the entrance portrait of the Gryffindor Common Room. The Fat Lady had been absent from her portrait for the last five minutes and he waited patiently for someone to exit. With only an hour till dinner, Harry wanted to talk to Ginny in private beforehand.

Finally, the Fat Lady returned, slightly tipsy. Impatiently, Harry said the password and gained entry. Ginny sat curled in one of the chairs by the fire, reading a book. Her back was turned toward him when he tried to sneak up on her.

"I know it's you, Harry," she said without looking up from her book. He sat in the chair next to her, adjusting his jeans as he pulled his legs up onto the chair with him.

"How's Malfoy?" she asked, finally looking up at him.

"Draco is awake and talking." He leaned forward and whispered to her, "I have got to tell you something."

"That you were naked and obviously looked like you had some fun while being a hero," Ginny responded in a similar whisper.

Harry felt a blush cross his features. "There is that." He gazed across the common room to see if it is empty: the two of them were the only current occupants. Just to be on the safe side, the Boy Who Lived cast a charm to keep the conversation private.

"Why did you do that?" Ginny asked. "No one else has passed through here since I sat down."

"Just in case," Harry cryptically whispered.

"So, do tell me Mr. Potter about it, and feel free to leave in any naughty details you wish," her voice dropped to a husky level.

Harry brought a hand up to cover his mouth in mock shock. "Ginerva Weasley, I didn't know you had such a dirty mind."

A slow grin crossed her lips. "Dirty is dreaming of being naked with Luna Lovegood and Hermione Granger at the same time." She looked like the cat who stole the cream.

"Both?" Harry practically shouted. He let a little snicker cross his lips. "Luna might be manipulated easily enough into being naked, but she's too good of a friend and that would be cruel. And Hermione is dating your brother after several long years of a delicate dance."

"Yeah, asking to have sex with his girlfriend maybe a little much." Ginny said, laughing. "The two of them have been reoccurring figures in my dreams, and by reoccurring, I mean three times since the start of school. This was the first dream with both of them interacting with me at the same time. I dreamt the tree of us walked into the Great Hall in only our underclothes, and we started trying on each others nickers."

"Weird," he said with a grin.

"The funny part is that we start comparing breast sizes and the color of our pubic hear, and theorizing why we don't have penises."

Harry burst out laughing.

"The funny thing is I have a distinct memory of being very little and taking a bath with Ron. He asked me why I broke mine off." She managed to say this with a straight face before bursting out in giggles.

He laughed even harder until the tears fell.

"It's like my only really young memory," she said, accentuating the words with her hands.

Harry stopped laughing and got a look on his face. Wiping the tears of laughter off his face, he switched emotional directions. "I have no happy childhood memories," the voice was very small from his lips.

"Then it is a good thing you have the rest of your life to create happy ones." Ginny said, putting a hand over his. "So, Harry, do tell..."

After a moment to regain his composure and staring down at the hand upon his own, he spoke. "I did the only thing that came to mind to help him: use my body heat. He wasn't breathing; I had to get him breathing again."

"You mean that he was dead?" Her eyes widened as she said it.

"Yeah, I got his heart started again. He even coughed up a mouthful of water into my face. Inside, I was so scared, but I knew what I had to do." He paused briefly. "Getting him back to the castle was the hard part."

"That walking bed was a good stroke." Ginny complemented him.

"Thanks," he said, bowing his head a little. "My Muggle background came in handy for once. Memories of those documentaries allowed me to save Draco."

"Is that how you knew to get naked?"

"Sharing my body heat without warming him to quickly was the key," Harry nodded. A sly grin came over his features as he continued. "Having his body under mine was one of the greatest feeling I've ever had."

"Better experience, I'm sure, when he is warm and conscious," Ginny said with a raised eyebrow.

"Rubbing my body over his was the most erotic thing I've ever done. I had such a wood at one point, especially with the feel of my Lil Potter rubbing his inner thigh area." A glazed look came over his features and he licked his lips.

"Looks like Lil Potter is at attention again," even from her viewpoint, she could see the straining of the jeans and the way he clutched the arms of the chair. "Bet it is even better when the other person is awake and responsive."

The scarlet blush radiated across his face in full bloom. "I kissed him," he said really fast.

"You what?" Ginny's eyes bulged slightly.

"Kissed him. It was right before you walked up."

"And here I thought your head was just lowered to check nuzzle his neck," Ginny sing songed. "Little did I know how naughty you were."

"He said my name, well, Potter, in a way that kindled a fire in my blood, like a lover would. It was ask if he knew I was up above him, Ginny, doing these things to his body and he liked it."

"You did things to him?" her voice elevated.

"Not like that, I promise," he quickly said. "But his body responded lovingly to my being there." He sighed audibly. "I look forward to a future where he says my name like that again." Harry cleared his throat and tried to will Lil Potter down before speaking again.

"He said stuff in his barely conscious state: he talked about Sirius." A change came over his voice.

Ginny looked confused. "Random ramblings?" She offered.

"That's what I thought too. "Ginny, did you know the Blacks and the Malfoys are cousins by marriage?"

So is about every pureblood family," she spoke a familiar line.

"Draco's mother was a Black and was Bellatrix Lestrange's sister."

"It is doubtful that Sirius had that much dealings with the Malfoy, especially the one in our year," Ginny said.

"I don't know, but he said 'cousins' and I surmise that it was in reference to the Blacks." He paused again for a dramatic affect. "That's not the half weird part," Harry said sitting a little straighter and leaning more forward in the chair toward her. "The weird part was that he knew that Pettigrew was the murderer, the one repsonsible. It was as if he had read it from my thoughts. Malfoy had just said Sirius's name, followed by murderer, and just when I was biting my tongue not to automatically correct him and say that Pettigrew did it, Malfoy said the name Pettigrew."

"How do you know he wasn't accusing him of murdering him and everyone?" Ginny asked, very enthralled.

"By the look that came over his face when he said it. Draco was awake and coherentish at this point."

Ginny looked a little confused.

"He had awakened," Harry said, "but he seemed to see and talk to something I could not see. I wouldn't call him one hundred percent awake at this point."

Before Ginny could interrupt, he continued. "There is another thing, a crow that seemed to follow us around. I saw it several times and the last was inside the Hospital wing."

"How could a bird get inside? Let alone why would a crow be out in the middle of winter? Don't they fly south or something?" Ginny put on a Hermione look. "We'll just have to do a little library research, for it sounds rather odd."

Suddenly a third year boy walked into the Common Room. He passed by without noticing them, and right out the portrait hole.

Harry pulled out his watch, which was attached to his pants. "Quarter till," he said. "I got more to tell you, but do you want to head down to dinner first?"

"Sure," she said, starting to stand.

"I could change and put my clothes up in my trunk," he said, pulling them out of his pocket.

"Gay boys, always worried about their looks." Ginny mock chidded. She reached out to pull him up. When he stood, she pulled him into a hug. "I'm so proud of you, Harry Potter, you're truly a hero," she whispered to him.

"This hero needs a good old fashioned wank." He said, a renewed grin transversing his face. "I'll meet you down there in a few minutes, don't wait up."

Ginny gave a squeeze before retreating out the door to leave Harry to his hand job, resisting any comment that could come into her mind.

Harry let his thoughts return to a naked Draco as he took the steps two by two up to the Seventh Year Dorm, which was closest to the bottom, as it was the perk of being a 7th Year. He dashed into his dorm to find it thankfully empty, including Seamus's bed. Pulling the curtains close, he placed a provacy charm on them.

Laying down, he dropped his shrunken clothes at the foot of the bed. Closing his eyes, he thought of the blond whose life he saved. He remembered the smoothness of Draco's chest and the small clutch of hair surrounding each nipple. He remembered laying himself down his chest and feeling the coolness of the body. He remembered the feel of Lil P as he pressed it into the thigh of the other boy, including the feel of the localized hairs as he rubbed him to get warm. That did it, Harry was hard again.

He reached down to touch himself through the denim, running his fingers down the legnth of the strain on his pants. Harry imagined that he grabbed a hold of Malfoy's and stroked it into hardness. Unzipping his pants, as he had not put any nickers back on, he imagined Draco returning that kiss and gazing into those gray eyes. Stroking and pulling at Lil P, he imagined that it was Draco's hand that touched him. Harry pulled up his shirt and stared down the length of his body, remembering the look of Draco's below him, and watching himself in action. Fairly quickly, he got that toe curling feeling as he arched himself into his own touch. Faster and faster he stroked himself so that his heart raced and that he remembered the private smile that Draco gave him in parting. Using both hands now, he played with himself, tugging on the foreskin and grabbing at the base. He arches as he envisions that it was all over the paler blond boy.

**Part 5** _A Death Eater Interlude_

Deep in the English countryside, a lone stone cabin with a single light coming from a window sat nestled, covered in snow. Open snowy fields to the front of the cabin and though it is day, the woods behind it were dark and unwelcoming. On the side facing the snow covered fields, a stone fence separated the property from the snow. Next to the stone door, which looked incapable of movement, a small bronze plaque with the initials _CK_ on it. Three snow covered oaks full and large spread over the inner property.

Outside the stone gate a heavily cloaked figure appeared with a pop; the hood spilled low over the owners face, hiding it in shadow. With a tap of a wand and a few special words, the gate unlocked itself and several magical defenses lowered to let the figure in. The cloaked figure crossed the yard following an existing set of worn tracks right to the front door. At the heavy stone door, the figure tapped the wand in a special pattern to gain entry.

With several audible creaks, the door opened. The cabin was warm with several occupants spaced around the main room and a fire glowing in the fireplace to the left if the entryway.

"Is this all that is left?" the new arrival asked, pulling his hood down to reveal shaggy graying brown hair and a large jagged scar leading down his right cheek.

"Since the Dark Lord's disappearance," not a one would say death, for they feared a bug on the wall would tell him that they believed him dead, "the Ministry has taken drastic action on suspected members." A middle aged man said, who sat a table with several goblets and small food items laid about.

"Lucius Malfoy is an example of what will happen to all of us. With these comas, they are in no hurry to trial anybody," a young blond woman on the other side of the table commented.

"It's been a year since the battle. He's not dead, he's just biding his time in hiding," a man from next to the fireplace said, the fire's glow playing shadows on his age warn face.

"Just like sixteen years ago, will it take another ten to hear word of him?" the young blond woman said.

"The death of the only one he ever feared should be a quick lure for his return. He may lie and wait for things to quiet down, and when they feel safe again, he will return," said a man who stood near the entryway door, his arms severely scarred.

"Should we actively go looking for him? Listen to every whisper of him?" the newest arrival said.

"The prophecy has not been fulfilled, Harry Potter is not dead," the middle aged man said as he held up his goblet to take a drink.

"Only one here knows of the prophecy," another guy sitting by the fire said, patting his squirming pocket. He then pulled a rat out of the pocket. "Wormtail, come out and play," he said dropping the rat on the floor. Before the rat touched the ground, a short stubby man appeared in place.

"As the Dark Lord's most loyal servant, I've been privy to such knowledge." For once Wormtail looked a little taller and stood a little straighter. "Does anyone deny my knowledge?"

No one spoke. To say something one way or another was a fight. It was even a ballsy thing for the rat to have declared, but he knew it was a position of power. "After all, it was I who sought out the Dark Lord after those long thirteen years." He paused for dramatic effect. "What does our resident spy say about the going ons at Hogwarts?"

All eyes turned to a petite brown eyed black haired woman who was taking a drink at that moment.

After taking her sip, she sat the goblet down on the table."Nothing has been spoken about the Dark Lord amongst the teachers. They morn the loss of their headmaster still and the traitor has kept his ear to the wind, astutely on the lookout for any hint of out activities."

"And what of the boy who still lives?" the young blond asked.

"Unfortunately, he has recovered from everything and is returning to normal."

"No love interests?" the words were small from the young blond. Everyone looked at her. "Just so we can use her against him at a future time," she shrugged.

"The Boy Who Lives has a crush for Lucius Malfoy's boy. I've seen it myself," the spy said.

A conniving smirk crossed Wormtail's face. He remembered a distant time when he had used the love between Black and Potter to his own advantage.

"The young Malfoy appears to have no intention to follow in his father's footfalls. He did not come to our side when the call went out before the battle. We may be able to use this to our advantage." The spy pushed a stray black hair back behind her ear.

The last to arrive pulled out a box the size of his hand from his pocket. The box gave a shake as he sat it down on the table. "In this box I present a present for Hogwarts." Everyone gathered around the table, curiosity getting the better of them.

"What's in the box?" one of the Death Eaters spoke what all wondered.

"Once you get back into Hogwarts," he said to the spy, "release it into the hallways. The school could use a little mayhem and holiday chaos." He handed the spy a parchment with instructions on how to open the box, which gave another little shaking tilt.

"It's alive" the other young blond woman said.

"It is a reminder of the Dark Lord's power and that we are going to make a return," the knowledgeable one said.

A clock on the wall chimed the hour. Several in the room stood to leave.

"Is everyone leaving at once?" the homeowner asked.

All rumbled that they must be going, and exited into the snowy day.

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There it is, a completed chapter 3. Since so few people have been commenting, I believe I am loosing people with this posting part by part. Now I am only going to post completed chapters. I have no idea when chapter 4 will be a whole entity, it is only in notes and outline form now. If anyone is interested, I can send you a completed part, and maybe you could help me edit that part.

Thanks to those that reviewed the individual parts. And thanks to those who have been reading this since early on, especially olupotter18, NATWEST, and BonneNuit.


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